MWRA project irks Parkway Rd. residents
Published on May 16th, 2001
STONEHAM, MA - The Massachusetts Water Resource Authority sent thousands of cars down a Stoneham side street last week.
A 1997 traffic study commissioned by Selectmen recorded 3,674 cars crossing Main Street from South Street onto North Border Road between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Beginning on May 9, 2001, the MWRA began replacing the water gates at this busy intersection, detouring cars via Parkway. The compact-car-sized gates regulate Stoneham’s main water feed from a 24-inch pipe. The work will take at least six weeks to complete.
Notice of the project posted in April and May said only that work done at the intersection of Main Street and North Border Road “might impact traffic” and turn water brown.
“We didn’t get any notice that the detour would cut through our street,” said Steve Kelly of 16 Parkway Road. “There are a lot of little kids on Parkway.”
Kelly said that although a police officer was standing beside work at the main intersection, cars were whipping around the corner on Parkway.
As of May 14, Stoneham Police Safety Officer Larry Rotondi set up a traffic detail to watch cars detouring through Parkway.
“I plan to reroute traffic every couple weeks so Parkway isn’t the only cut through used during the project,” Rotondi added. Fairview Road and Upland Road may share the burden.
The MWRA apologized for surprising abutters and promised to send fliers to residents along possible detour routes on future projects.
“We had a flier ready for this project,” said MWRA Public Information spokesperson Cory Tromblee. “We were told the project would be delayed, so we shelved the flier. Then we found out we could go ahead with the work after all, but we forgot to send out the flier.”
Officials from the Stoneham Police and MWRA also plan to get together before large projects begin to make sure future work runs smoothly.
The law does not require the MWRA to send fliers or call the cops, but “we traditionally bend over backwards to let people know,” Tromblee said.
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