Since July.
That’s nine months.
And ask any mother, a LOT can happen in nine months.
What can’t happen in nine months, however, is the completion of infrastructure work on Duncan’s Second Street.
“We’ve had this road fiasco going on since July,” said resident Brian Lowe of the yet-to-be-paved, pot-holed mess that is the gravel roadway in front of his home.
“I’ve seen better roads when I was in the military in the Middle East,” he noted. “This is getting ridiculous.”
Lowe said he’s witnessed “a couple people who ride motorcycles just about wipe out their bikes” and he even has a friend who refuses to drive his Mustang down the road.
While some might enjoy less traffic and fewer visitors, Lowe’s frustration is mounting.
“It was originally supposed to be finished before November. November led into March and now here we are in April and the city isn’t even returning calls anymore,” he said.
Over at city hall, Peter de Verteuil, Duncan’s chief administrative officer, did answer his phone.
He said he understands why residents — and even those just driving by — are flustered, but that’s the nature of road work.
“We certainly can appreciate the frustration levels from the residents along the street there because it’s been a long haul,” de Verteuil said.
The CAO noted various delays due to some sub-grade issues and some deficiencies in the infrastructure works that had to be corrected.
Not to mention the brutal winter.
“The weather has just wreaked havoc with respect to being able to pour the concrete at all until fairly recently. That’s been our challenge,” he explained.
And while the weather is now amenable to pouring concrete, local contractor Duncan Paving is not. At least not yet for this particular project.
“Duncan Paving has a long list of projects that are already ahead of us so we are just waiting until they are caught up,” de Verteuil said.
It’ll be about a month before the headache is over.
“We definitely appreciate and sympathize with what residents have been going through,” he said. “But at the moment we’re just going to have to try to keep the road in the best condition we can until Duncan Paving is able to come in May.”
