Southwick Board of Health Rejects 40-Year-Old Septic System for New Home

SOUTHWICK -- May 4, 2026, Southwick Board of Health unanimously blocks builder's use of 40-year-old, never-used septic system. The three-member board voted 3-0 at its May 4 meeting to reject a Title V inspection report submitted for a Hummel Lane property, requiring new soil evaluations, perc tests, and in all likelihood a full replacement system before a proposed new home can be built. Title V contractor Tom Fitzgerald and a second technical expert told the board the April 14, 2026 inspection report was invalid because required questions about effluent and system flow could not be answered for a system that has never been used, and that the builder's own engineer acknowledged the system bottom sits roughly 1.8 feet above seasonal high groundwater, short of the four-to-five-foot minimum required under both the original 1993 code and current Title V standards. The builder has 14 days to file a written appeal. The board also set a May 18 condemnation hearing for 85 Granville Road, where health inspectors found 22 violations including exposed electrical panels and no smoke detectors in a home where a woman and her six-year-old child appear to be living.