Date: Fri 07-Feb-1997

By Previous Employees

Published: Aug 11, 1999 12:00 am

Publication: Bee

Author: LIBRAR

Quick Words:

Fairfield-Hills-bypass

Full Text:

Fairfield Hills Bypass Work Due This Spring

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

The state has launched the Fairfield Hills bypass construction project by

advertising construction specifications for project, a planned east-west

connector road intended to alleviate traffic congestion in the town center.

Tim Gaffey, the state Department of Transportation's (DOT) bypass road project

manager, said Wednesday specifications for the work were advertised January

29. Construction bids are scheduled to open February 26, he said.

The price of the project is estimated at $4 million, including construction

and design costs.

The DOT hopes to award the construction contract during the first half of

April, Mr Gaffey said. Initial construction work on the road project could

begin as early as May, he said.

Mr Gaffey said the construction project should be done by the end of the 1998

construction season, or even earlier. The 1998 construction season will end on

November 30 of that year.

Initial work will involve moving utility poles on the site to make way for the

new road.

The bypass road will provide improved access for motorists between Route 25,

Interstate 84 and Route 34. Town officials see the road as a means to

alleviate heavy truck traffic through the town center.

The bypass road has been designed for heavy truck traffic. Truck traffic is

now banned on the Fairfield Hills grounds.

Advanced erosion control measures will be used during bypass road

construction. Special contamination traps will be installed because the area

is above the Pootatuck Aquifer.

The bypass road project is environmentally significant because it is unusual

to build a major connector road in a place containing an area's designated

sole source aquifer.

A new bridge crossing the Pootatuck River will be 40 feet wide. The Pootatuck

River will have a 60-foot wide opening for water flow below the new bridge,

compared to the 20-foot wide opening on the existing narrow, deteriorated

bridge.

The new bridge crossing the Pootatuck River will be built in stages, requiring

the need for a temporary traffic signal to regulate alternating one-way

traffic flow.

A combination of state and federal funds will cover project costs. The new

road will bypass the core campus of Fairfield Hills. The road will link the

intersection of Mile Hill Road South and Mile Hill Road to the area where Mile

Hill Road intersects with Oakview Road.

A 1991 agreement, which resolved a lawsuit filed by the town against the state

over the state's construction of Garner Correctional Institution, provided, in

part, that the state build a bypass road across the Fairfield Hills grounds to

alleviate traffic congestion in the town center.

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Well that is some spin. The Democrats have a super majority on the LC and passed the Education Budget without serious consideration of if the voters could afford the multi million dollar increase. "Was the request justified?" rather than "is this needed?" and "can the voters shoulder yet another large increase?" The voters rightly sent it back. Then for some reason all the discussion around reductions to the increase seemed to be coming from the classroom, rather than administration and overhead costs. Is this a coercive tactic to manipulate parents into supporting the budget like tacit threat of cutting freshman sports was two years ago? Who believes the Democrats did not caucus privately before the meeting and came in with a number already worked out? This is the Dems budget, they own it.

Education Cuts: Who Voted For What

I think it is important that we do not villainize every black box seen around a home, business, farm, or municipal property. A black exterior station does not always mean rat poison is being used. These stations can hold a number of different products, including monitoring blocks, snap traps, non-toxic bait, anti-tick bait stations, organic salt- or cornmeal-based control products, and newer fertility-control approaches intended to reduce rodent populations without traditional poisons. The better conversation, in my opinion, is not simply “black boxes are bad,” but rather: what is inside them, who is maintaining them, and whether the rodent issue is being managed responsibly. Exclusion, sanitation, trapping, habitat reduction, and careful monitoring should all be part of a responsible IPM strategy. To be fair, on my own property I do use rodenticides, including Bromethalin and Bromadiolone, in secured bait stations. But that is a choice I make for my property, based on my circumstances and the risk I am trying to manage. I also believe property owners should understand the tradeoffs and be encouraged to use the least harmful effective method whenever possible. I support protecting Newtown’s wildlife. I also support giving residents accurate information and not assuming that every black box represents reckless or unsafe pest control. The goal should be responsible rodent management, not fear of the box itself.

Discusses Policy Against Rodenticides

Debora, thank you! I accidentally doubled the project prices by adding the bond to the appropriation. Thank you so much for catching that and pointing it out. With the corrected numbers, the voters approved a combined $1.32 million for a salt shed ($600k) and library pavement ($720k), while rejecting the $1.12 million replacement turf. Regarding the 80s, I truly respect the hurdle of 14% mortgage rates. My point is simply that the math has shifted: in 1980, while the rates were higher, the price of a home relative to earnings was significantly lower. We are facing a different, but equally crushing, financial wall. Ultimately, it is disheartening that voters who recognized safe sidewalks and parking lots as essential, dismissed a playing field in the exact same condition. The turf has passed its life cycle and is just as much of a liability as the library’s pavement, the only difference is that this safety concern affects thousands of children who, coincidentally, cannot vote. These are apples-to-apples needs. I was hopeful our community would agree that all Newtown residents deserve safe conditions, regardless of which facility they utilize. Again, I would be remiss not to mention that when 82% of residents don’t show up, we have to deal with the interests of those who did. Hopefully, the next referendum will have a bigger turnout.

The ‘Me’ Generation

Thanks for the reply. I meant the numbers you presented in your letter. I found one place where other numbers were listed: https://www.newtownbee.com/04232026/get-out-and-vote-on-the-2026-27-proposed-municipal-and-school-budgets/?q=\\\%22advisory%20questions\\\%22. In that article, the numbers were cited as: Treadwell field: $1,125,000 Library: $720,000 Salt Storage: $600,000 As one who started out in the early 80's when inflation was double digits, my 1985 mortgage rate was 14%, and child care costs were comparable (in present value), I shared your grief but never considered the voters ironic or shameful. PS. I agree college tuition is ridiculous. Thankfully, universities are offering (or considering) waiving all or most tuition for middle class families (upwards of $200,000 incomes). Hopefully, they'll also reconsider their need for those funds in the first place.

Sure! Child care costs: https://www.ffyf.org/2022/10/13/data-child-care-prices-continue-to-rise-ahead-of-midterm-elections-outpacing-inflation/ (also from 2021-2025 we had 2 children in a local daycare in Newtown and it cost us $3200 a month, so that's a number I am very familiar with) Home price / median price vs income source: https://www.jchs.harvard.edu/home-price-income-ratios Tuition increase vs inflation: https://feed.georgetown.edu/access-affordability/noting-a-decline-in-middle-class-students-colleges-provide-more-aid/ Hope this helps :)

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Date: Fri 07-Feb-1997

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