‘Big hole in the ground’ forcing many detours

By Mark Reynolds
Posted 5/23/23

Lloyd Supervisor Dave Plavchak gave an update on the work being done at the intersection of Tillson Avenue and Toc Drive, saying, “at the moment there is a big hole in the ground” because …

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‘Big hole in the ground’ forcing many detours

Posted
Lloyd Supervisor Dave Plavchak gave an update on the work being done at the intersection of Tillson Avenue and Toc Drive, saying, “at the moment there is a big hole in the ground” because piping and gas lines are in the process of being moved. He added that Vineyard Avenue has been closed and a traffic light has been placed at Chapel Hill Road, “for safety reasons because we didn’t want people who are not familiar with making that left turn, to go out there and not be ready for it.” He estimated that because of the roadwork, about 2,000 more cars are being detoured in that direction every day. He pointed out that the timing of the traffic light has been adjusted to help alleviate the backup of cars.
 
“So the timing from 4 to 6:30 going west and from 7 to 9 in the morning, we’ve adjusted,” he said. “We will continue to watch it and if it needs to be changed again, we will do it until we get it right.”
 
Plavchak said excavation at the intersection, “has uncovered some of the water conflicts that we thought we would find and I believe all of the gas lines have been moved, but there is about 5 to 6 more months of work to be done there. It’s not something where we will close [the road] for a week and the projects going to be done; we’re moving an entire road, an entire culvert and an entire bridge. It’s going to be pretty much the rest of the summer for sure and probably another month after that, but the key is to get it done this year and I think when it’s done everybody will appreciate it.”
 
Before Vineyard Avenue could be closed, Plavchak said the road barriers had to be put in place and the construction equipment lined up, which allowed the public time to get used to seeing this and understand the re-routing of traffic.
 
“It’s a big job and a big inconvenience and what we can hope for is for it to come out the way we expect it to come out, with aligned roads, nice sidewalks and retaining walls,” he said. He pointed out that fixing this intersection is of paramount importance because it is the third highest accident point in town.
 
Pavilion Update
Plavchak said that the town did not receive any new bids for the town field pavilion when it was re-sent out recently.
 
“The reasons were because of the complexity and the different parts of the bid,” he said. “We’ve made it much simpler now; we’re going to get all of the excavation and water sewer work done [by the town] and then we are going to bid out the cement piece, which is the pad, and then we’re going to bid out the actual building in that sequence.”
 
Plavchak said they are sticking with the same design, “but we think by doing it this way we can put the basic pieces in and then if we have time at the end of this year, we’ll continue on with the storage space and the bathrooms; if not, just hold them till next year.”
 
Plavchak estimates the concrete work will cost about $20,000 and the cost of the structure and the labor to erect it could reach $200,000.
 
Plavchak said the town already has a $125,000 grant to go towards the project and he has applied for an additional grant of  $100,000. There may be some additional costs that the town would have to pay for but it is not expected to be significant.
 
“We’re going to move forward this way and every stage will be brought to the Town Board and we’ll go from there,” he said.
 
Tony Williams Parking Lot
Plavchak expects the town will soon receive finalized plans for the additional parking at Tony Williams, which will be sent out for bids to see what the cost would be.
“I think we should bid that one out and then decide next month what we’re going to do with it,” he said.  
 
Plavchak said he is working on a job description for a new Affordable Housing Administrator and is hoping to create the position in June.