VILLAGE OF CHATHAM FORWARDS ITS "CURB APPEAL" TO STATE

Mike McCagg ccSCOOP News 03-05-09 - Responding to complaints from business owners and residents, the Chatham Village Board is appealing to the state to address the “improvements” to village streets that many contend are a threat to both property and people. Mayor Paul Boehme told ccSCOOP this week that he has forwarded to the NYS Department of Transportation and to state lawmakers a petition signed by more than 260 residents which seeks immediate action to correct sharp curbs and remedy other problems that have caused woes for business owners, customers, and residents.

“That is great news,” said Donna Oakes, co-chair of the Chatham Business Alliance. “We have enough disgruntled people [here] that we hope they will take action quickly.”

The Chatham Business Alliance presented the petition to the Village Board at a recent meeting, seeking village action to address the problems that have plagued the village since last fall. The curbs, installed as part of the much-discussed State Department of Transportation reconstruction project, are 7.5 inches high—twice the previous height—and they are "sharp,” Oakes said. The situation has led to a number of flat tires for residents and customers parking along Main Street.

"When someone gets a flat tire, that’s one more customer who is not going to come back,” she said.

The 60-member Chatham Business Alliance (CBA) would like the sharp edge of the curbs to be ground away. That, combined with raising the surface to the street—which will occur in the next phase of construction when contractors add a layer of blacktop to the roadway—would likely address the issue.

Another issue mentioned on the petition is the “bump outs” that protrude into the street from sidewalks and flank cross walks. CBA members contend the bump-outs are dangerous for drivers, because they don’t realize they are there, and for pedestrians, because they are not properly cared for and can be slippery. At least one car accident occurred when an elderly driver struck one of the bump-outs.

Mayor Boehme said the Village Board didn’t add an official request from the village to the petition to take action, maintaining that the petition spoke for itself. “We are saying that we are concerned about the problem,” Boehme said.

While awaiting a response from DOT and the lawmakers, the mayor reported that contractors have resumed work on the overall project, which was put on hiatus last fall because of winter weather. Boehme said work has begun on “tunneling” on River Street and on a retaining wall on Spring Street. “Full-fledged” work on the nearly two-year-old project was to have resumed this week but has been delayed by equipment problems, the mayor said.

The project is expected to be completed this summer.