Recently finished work described as ‘poor quality’
By Liz Schevtchuk Armstrong
The New York State Department of Transportation has reportedly rejected the paving job on the reconfigured intersection of Route 9, a state highway, at Glassbury Court and wants the new surface torn up and replaced.
Philipstown Supervisor Richard Shea revealed the unexpected turn of events to Philipstown.info on Monday (Aug. 12), following a brief phone conversation a few days earlier with a regional DOT engineering official.
Shea said the regional DOT office alerted him that the new pavement needed to be removed and replaced with a better surface. “They’re not going to accept the pavement job. I don’t know why,” Shea said. “All I know is that I got a call that there is a problem with the pavement.”
According to Beau Duffy, DOT director of communications at the state headquarters in Albany, “the paving at Glassbury Court was performed under permit by the developer,” who also handled the widening. “The paving is not acceptable,” Duffy said Tuesday afternoon. “The placement is poor quality and it’s not smooth. We will be meeting with the developer to discuss the remediation. The repair will not cost the state any money; it will be the responsibility of the developer.”
Wilder Balter Partners Inc., a development firm that specializes in affordable housing and complexes for retirees, built Glassbury Court, which offers energy efficient homes in a quiet setting near Hustis Road and Quarry Pond, an old rock excavation site.
An attempt to reach Bill Balter, a company executive, on Tuesday was not immediately successful. Balter came before the Philipstown Town Board in July 2012, to explain the then-pending lane reconfiguration and pavement project. He said the goal, reflecting a plan not realized earlier as Glassbury Court got built, was to enhance safety by providing real turning lanes into the complex from Route 9.
“He’s been great to work with” in development of the community at Quarry Pond, Shea said, praising the attractiveness and amenities found in the houses and overall complex. “He’s been really upstanding.”
DOT is making the right call questioning the outcome of this paving project. Naturally, this is subject to expert analysis and debate. However, for the untrained eye (that is me, a frequent traveler on this segment of Route 9) this area was uncharacteristically bumpy for a spanking new paving job, and it was definitely not commensurable with the fine Glassbury Court development.
I’m glad to hear that DOT will not accept the blacktop job on Route 9 near Hustis Road. Having been in highway construction for more than 40 years I was disappointed at the finished product done by the contractor. The road is bumpy and unsafe as it now is. It needs to be milled and repaved. Maybe the contractor who is paving Route 9 south to Route 301 should do the repairs. Then there will be no breaks in the job. Also, they are doing night paving. This will eliminate the traffic jams that took place when the original contractor was working.
New York State is wonderful; after the work on Route 9 is done, DOT comes in and condemns it. The road is a botched job, bumpy and the “decel” lane is too short, but where were the state “clerk of the works” or overseers when the work was done? The most important road this side of the Hudson, and certainly through Philipstown and they had no one watching daily?
When Nelsonville had similar work done last year on several streets, it hired a professional engineering firm to keep close tabs on the contractors. A big job such as this one on 9 and they were absent? Have the budget cuts been that severe that there was no one available? Wow, what an outfit!
Yes, the new road works undulate somewhat, however, it is now the smoothest ride on Route 9. What a tragic waste of time and money it will be to rip up the road and re-pave it. Hopefully, there is someone in a position of authority who can right this wrong before it is too late.
Undulates somewhat. Dirt roads in Philipstown are a smoother ride than that section of Route 9.