Marshall Fire victim Adam Ciesielski had specific instructions for the crews preparing to clear the heap of ash that had once been his dream home: leave the concrete foundation.

Ciesielski was underinsured and after performing financial triage, he calculated that, by saving his foundation, he could trim $104,000 off of the price of a rebuild.

With that amount of savings, he could afford to do it. Otherwise, his option is to leave Original Town in Superior and live with his parents in Philadelphia.

But there was hope.

Judge dismisses final lawsuit related to Marshall fire debris cleanup

Ciesielski found a Littleton company that used forensic engineering to study the effects of extremely hot fire on a cement foundation. New Roam, the company, had saved two Marshall Fire basements from the landfill already despite the fact that Boulder County said it couldn’t be done.

After assessing the ruins at the 300th block of West William in Superior, New Roam determined that Ciesielski’s foundation could also be saved. 

“We gave Adam a letter which he presented to the county asking he not have his foundation removed,” New Roam Enterprises salesman TJ Rapoport told the Gazette. “Our plan was to utilize the strength of the undamaged portions of his original foundation to build a new foundation system that would be stronger from an engineering perspective.”

“That means the other three out of four we looked at, there are at least financial, timeline and engineering reasons to consider salvaging a partially damaged foundation,” Rapoport added.

The April 29 document reported  that “a sounding hammer provided evidence that the foundation was not damaged below the top 18 inches of concrete and at the northeast and northwest corners.” 

Rapoport said that, of 50 Marshall Fire-damaged home foundations they have evaluated, one in four are a complete loss and can’t be saved.

“That means the other three out of four we looked at there is least an economical argument,” Rapoport said.

With renewed energy after a devastating loss, Ciesielski started bombarding Boulder County and Superior by phone and with emails asking them to stop his foundation from ending up in the dump. He said that only one official, Superior Town Trustee, Neal Shah, fought for him.

“It would be great if someone overseeing the cleanup could step forward and say, ‘We screwed up.’ But unfortunately, everyone is more worried about job preservation than what is the right thing to do,” Shah told Colorado Politics.  

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“No one overseeing this process seems to have any empathy for the homeowners or what they are going through. Adam is now weeks or maybe months behind schedule and that puts him at greater risk to not have his home rebuilt before his insurance runs out,” Shah added.

Ciesielski said he was assured by Boulder County that the county was on board with his decision to keep the foundation of his home intact and to build up from that. 

As his turn for debris clean-up neared, he saw workers from Disaster Recovery Services excavating his neighbor’s parcel and asked them face-to-face to leave his foundation alone.

No worries, a crew of three told him, he said, adding they related to him they wouldn’t start work on his ruins until the next day, May 23.

That night, the 33-year old liquor distributor drove to his address to check out the developments.

To his horror, disaster removal workers had made off with his basement.

“The foundation was gone. It was a hole that looked like a meteor hit,” said Ciesielski. He guessed that a snowstorm was coming the next day and crews were rushing to finish up the neighborhood.

Despite his best efforts, no one had listened to him, he lamented.

But at 3,000 square feet costing $300 per square foot, he couldn’t afford to rebuild, he said. 

At first, Boulder County seemed open to working with him.

Court challenges continue as Boulder County forges ahead with Marshall fire debris removal

“We are working with the state to find a solution,” wrote Boulder County Disaster Recovery Manager Garry Sancafon in an email May 25.

A stressful month and many more calls and emails later, Ciesielski still has no foundation for his home and his future, he said, suddenly looks very uncertain.

His first email exchanges with Sancafon were helpful. But the latest communication, which came in an email from Sanfacon Tuesday, alarmed Ciesielski because, he told the Gazette, the Boulder official’s tone had changed.

“It sounded like a lawyer had written it,” he speculated.

It said: “Adam, A letter is currently being drafted and will be sent shortly to you that communicates the position of the State, County and Town.” 

It was the last time Ciesielski heard from the county.

When reached, Sanfacon referred The Gazette to a Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management spokesperson, who said the division is working with Boulder County to “determine the financial loss of the foundation being removed.”

“It is very unlikely that the foundation could be rebuilt upon,” said Micki Trost, the division’s spokesperson. “The state and county are determining the financial loss by working with the insurance company to determine the impact to the insurance coverage as well as builders to determine if the foundation would have been determined safe enough to rebuild on. The financial impact is necessary before any future steps can be taken.”

She said CDR Maguire, Colorado DHSEM’s contractor, was responsible for securing the right of entry forms for debris removal.

“The homeowner did everything correctly and returned all of the appropriate documents stating that they did not want the foundation removed. The state contractor provided all of the documents to Boulder County’s vendor DRC showing the foundation should not be removed,” Trost said. “DRC then removed the foundation.”  

Though Rapoport loves Boulder, he said he is disillusioned by what happened to Ciesielski.

“This was a catastrophe. We could help each other through a tough time by rolling up our sleeves and doing our best work,” Rapoport said. “I’m so sad that instead of doing our best, too many involved are taking their time and using measured responses on the advice of counsel.”

When Ciesielski bought the blue home with the cream-colored trim, he kept it afloat by taking on renters. Everyone who lived there lost what was inside: kayaks, furniture, and golf clubs. A metal boat evaporated.

“I don’t want a handout,” Ciesielski said. I just want back what they’ve taken away. And I want to continue to live in Colorado. I love it here.”