Eastham Conservation Commission Authorizes Emergency Demo Orders for Two Eroding Bluff Properties

Conservation · Meeting of February 10, 2026

Eastham Conservation Commission authorizes emergency demolition orders for two homes teetering on a rapidly eroding coastal bank at Brownell Road. The commission voted 6-0 at its February 10 meeting to authorize emergency certifications for the complete demolition of the dwelling at 153 Brownell Road, purchased December 9 by an LLC controlled by Ian Mead, and for the dwelling at 157 Brownell Road, owned by David Moot of Pittsburgh, who has not responded to phone calls, emails, or a certified demolition order from the building commissioner. At 153 Brownell Road, the bank shed more than eight feet in a single recent storm, leaving the structure roughly five feet from the top of the bank; applicant civil engineer Jason Ellis proposed cutting the house in half and relocating part of it on cribbing, but Conservation Director Hillary argued the commission lacked the structural and geological information to permit anything short of full demolition: "I don't think we have time to hem and haw, that bank is really unstable." A demolition protocol is due by the morning of February 13 and must be approved by the conservation agent, director, and chair before the commission ratifies the order.

The commission separately voted 5-0 to pause $300-per-day citations against prior owner Gary Vecchione at 150 Old State Highway, where a February 4 auction produced no qualifying bids and the property reverted to its bank lender, pending reevaluation at the March 10 meeting.

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Source: the Conservation meeting of February 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.