The sea has set its sights on a multimillion-dollar mansion teetering on the edge of a sandy bluff high above the beach on Cape Cod Bay.
Once a symbol of luxury, the sprawling 5,100-square-foot home is now a chilling reminder of nature’s unstoppable power, with the property’s collapse just a matter of time.
Erosion has reached the home’s foundation, leaving its tall walls and massive sliding doors teetering on the edge of a 25-foot drop to the sand below.
Previously offering stunning ocean views, a grand deck and a hot tub, the house now has only flimsy wooden slats acting as a feeble barrier against its inevitable fate of succumbing to the water.
The former owner, well aware of the home’s dire fate, previously dismantled parts of the structure, including parts of the deck and a small tower that held the primary bedroom, before walking away from the fight altogether.
The property has since been sold to a salvage company that has made its stance painfully clear – it won’t spend a dime to prevent disaster.
Now, as the waves continue their relentless march inland, officials in Wellfleet, Massachusetts fear the inevitable collapse could wreak havoc on the town’s delicate ecosystem.
When the home collapses, toxic debris will be sent straight into the harbor, endangering one of New England’s most prized areas where oysters are farmed.
A sprawling 5,100-square-foot home is teetering on the edge of a sandy bluff high above the beach on Cape Cod Bay in Wellfleet, Massachusetts
A sign in front of a home that sits atop a sandy bluff reads ‘keep off the dunes’
The Atlantic Ocean is reclaiming the land, swallowing nearly five feet of bluff per year
A report commissioned by the town projects if nothing is done, the 5,100-square-foot home will tumble into the bay within three years – and possibly much sooner.
Its certain fate is a reminder of the fragility of building along the cape, where thanks to climate change sea level rise has accelerated in recent years.
The Atlantic Ocean is reclaiming the land, swallowing nearly five feet of bluff per year.
‘I mean, the cape has always been moving,’ said John Cumbler, a retired environmental history professor who also serves on the Wellfleet Conservation Commission. ‘The sand is moving.’
The ill-fated mansion, built in 2010 on the shifting sands of Cape Cod’s bay side, has been a battlefront for years.
The original owners, Mark and Barbara Blasch, made a desperate attempt in 2018 to build a 241-foot seawall to halt the erosion, but their plea was denied by the Wellfleet Conservation Commission, citing concerns that it could worsen the destruction of the coastline.
Still, the fight continued. The couple took their case to state court and lost.
The property is within Cape Cod National Seashore. The National Seashore Administration supported rejection of the seawall because of the ‘critical location’ within the seashore and Wellfleet Harbor area, including critical habitat and valuable shellfish operations.
Erosion has clawed its way right up to the home’s foundation, leaving its towering walls and massive sliding doors precariously perched above a 25-foot drop to the sand below
One report said the home’s collapse could send debris into Wellfleet Harbor, where the town’s namesake oysters which take two to three years to reach maturity would be ruined
Appeals dragged on, but the inevitable loomed ever closer.
Then, in 2022, New York attorney John Bonomi made a shocking gamble – he bought the property for $5.5 million, fully aware of its circumstance.
What followed was a game of brinkmanship between the new owner and town officials.
Bonomi promised a plan to prevent catastrophe, but in December, just before he was due to present his strategy, he sold the house to CQN Salvage, a newly incorporated company represented by the same attorney.
The company made its position clear: ‘CQN Salvage is ready to work alongside the town in such efforts but will not fund them.’
At a tense town meeting, Wellfleet officials pressed Bonomi’s attorney for answers. ‘So, you plan to do nothing and allow it to fall into the water?’ demanded Conservation Agent Lecia McKenna.
‘I plan to ask you to not let it fall into the water,’ came the cold response.
With a price tag of at least $1 million for demolition, the town now finds itself staring down a disaster with no clear resolution.
The deed transfer remains in limbo as waves continue to carve away the land.
The earlier report said a collapse could send debris into Wellfleet Harbor, where the town’s namesake oysters, well known to shellfish lovers, take two to three years to reach maturity.
‘The house has a lot of fiberglass insulation in it. It has toxic material in it,’ Cumbler said.
With a price tag of at least $1 million for demolition, the town now finds itself staring down a disaster with no clear resolution – as The Atlantic moves ever closer
This winter, fierce storms have battered the already fragile coastline, pushing the house ever closer to its final descent
‘If that toxic material gets into Wellfleet Harbor, which is where the currents will take it, it could endanger the oyster industry in Wellfleet, our major industry outside of tourism.’
This winter, fierce storms have battered the already fragile coastline, pushing the house ever closer to its final descent.
For Cape Cod, this house is more than just another casualty of coastal erosion – it’s a warning.
The sea level at nearby Falmouth has risen 11 inches in the past 90 years, with data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration showing an alarming acceleration in the past three decades.
The coastline is retreating, and the ocean is taking back what was never meant to be built upon.
As the winds howl and the waves crash, the mansion stands on sands of borrowed time.
