Saturday, December 02, 2006

Plattsburgh, NY: Sod Off!




Like quicksand? Well, there’s plenty of it within the medians between the new sidewalks and the streets.

During the construction the old lawns were torn up and carried away. Then the resulting trenches will filled in with some new dirt. The other day some guys were rolling down the fresh soil, then sprinkling grass seed. But then it rained – a lot. Instant mud flats.

Usually after the street and sidewalk rehab is done, squares of grassy sod are put down. With thick sod you don’t have people’s feet sinking up to their ankles.

OK, maybe it’s too late in the season to put down sod. But any construction company should know that here in the North Country, you should have your lawn work wrapped up by the end of September or forget it. It’s obvious the crews were running behind schedule; they were paving the streets Halloween night.

So the answer is to try to get the job done on time or use a better type of soil. At least put up some sticks and orange ribbons to warn people that the new surface hasn’t taken yet, especially at night when the mud looks solid, safe to walk on.



I hate to see what could happen if someone breaks an ankle. But lawsuits do make The Powers That Be wake up and pay attention.

Actually, The Powers would be better off correcting a situation before getting stuck in a legal quagmire. Will they ever learn that a muckraker like me provides an invaluable service to the community? Instead, they remain muddleheaded.

Me, I remain standing on terra firma. At least I try to…

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