Water issues, empty promises upset Marysville homeowners awaiting move-in
PERRY COUNTY, Pa. (WHP) — New homeowners are pointing the finger at Veolia Water as they wait for the green light to move into their homes, but Veolia says they should be looking at the developers.
Families say they were told they can’t move into the brand-new homes they’ve been waiting for at Yingst Rockville Estates because of water contamination concerns.
“It’s impacting, you know, people and their lives. Financially, emotionally, and logistically — it’s a nightmare,” said Barbara Dashiell, a Marysville homeowner.
Dashiell and her partner, Joe Jama, said they could soon be without a home because of an issue in the development’s water tank that they allegedly were told had started in October.
“It’s frustrating because we’re concerned about our furniture, where we’re going to put our furniture, because we have to move out of the house we currently live in,” said Joe Jama, a Marysville homeowner.
They claim their settlement and move-in dates were delayed because Yingst Building Group told them an engineer had opened a valve, resulting in contamination.
“That has to be alleviated before we can get to use an occupancy permit. They have to make sure that we have clean water to the house,” said Barbara Dashiell, a Marysville homeowner.
A Veolia spokesperson wrote in a statement Friday that there is no contamination issue with the water.
There is no contamination issue with drinking water in the Marysville area. Water service remains in compliance with all state and federal drinking water quality standards.
Veolia is working diligently to connect a new water tank and distribution lines built by the Rockville Estates developer to our existing water system in the area. As we have explained to the developer from the start, installing new water infrastructure at the top of a hill is a complex undertaking that requires careful planning and calibration to minimize any impact on the rest of the system. We have never provided a firm date for commissioning the developer’s new water infrastructure because of the complexities involved, and would never have advised the developer to provide any firm date to their customers.
Veolia is aware that a few homes in this new phase are in the process of being sold. Once the new tank is placed online, Veolia will be able to provide adequate water service to the new residents. Veolia is working expeditiously to place the tank and new infrastructure in service, while complying with all required regulatory processes.
Veolia received an informal complaint filed with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission about this issue, from a customer who repeatedly called 888-288-8972 to get more information. Veolia never received those calls, because our phone number is 888-299-8972. The Commission informed Veolia that they have dismissed and closed the complaint as of today, December 5. We advised the Commission that with our accelerated commissioning timeline, we anticipate completing the work by January 9, 2026. However, we have made clear that completion could be delayed by permitting, weather, staff availability and other issues.
“I guess the frustration is that a mistake was made. We’re fine with that. There’s going to be a resolution. We know eventually we’ll move in, but it just seems to be dragging on and on and on,” said Dashiell.
Yingst Building Group responded with the following statement:
Yingst Building Group is aware of the challenges that are delaying water service to several lots in Rockville Estates.
The developer and the water company are actively working to resolve the issue, and we remain hopeful that full service will be restored in the near future.
Our priority is to support our clients impacted by this delay. We are committed to maintaining clear communication, providing resources, and doing everything within our control to minimize disruption and ensure their needs are met.