By: Lydia Crawley
The Parsons Advocate
The Town of Davis announced February 11th during the regular Town Council meeting that the Town’s water project is slated to begin March 15th, weather permitting.
Ashley with Thrasher updated the Council on the status of the project. She said that Phase I was anticipated to be shut down for winter through at least March 15th.
“We wanted to make sure that they could get in here before the DOH project got in here,” Ashley said.
According to Ashley, she sat in on a preconstruction conference for the DOH project for the Town of Davis. The DOH timeline for the Town’s project is slated for May 1st, according to Ashley.
“Our contractor’s confident that he can get in here and get the water line in before they get started,” Ashley said.
Town Council Member Doug Martin said that the road was planned to be down to one lane for about 15 days for the completion of the DOH portion of work in the Town.
Town Council Member Carrie Hawkins said that word needed to be given to employers along William Avenue as soon as possible so that they could arrange their employee’s vacations around the construction work. However, following the revelation that only one lane would be closed at a time, Hawkins said it could be up to individual employers whether to shut down or not.
Martin said the DOH plans to begin on the Sirianni’s side of William Avenue and close the lane on that side first for construction, then work on the other side following.
“They are going to try one lane,” Martin said.
Parking and access to the Post Office were the main concerns for the Council during the two weeks of the DOH project. Discussion centered on alternative parking areas, as well as how residents would access their mail during construction.
Mayor Al Tomson admitted that as of now, the Town did not have a plan for the mail. There were concerns about the elderly that could not cross the street or climb the hill behind the building.
“We do not have a good plan for that,” Tomson said. “I think it is going to become an ad-hoc and on the fly as to what we can do.”
Martin said that he hoped to discuss the issue during a walk through in April with the DOH.
Council Member Jennie Helmick asked about the status of the sidewalk project, once the DOH project was completed. Mayor Tomson said that the project was moving at a “glacial pace” and that the sidewalk project was not yet out of the planning phase. While lights are not part of the project currently, Tomson and Council Member Joe Holmes both said they were hopeful that one day, lights could be erected along William Avenue.
Ashley announced a slight change to a service on Third Street that is being reconnected. Due to issues with the line disconnecting at the property due to pressure issues, crews would be installing a gate valve and mechanical joint connections so that the area would be “less likely to pull apart.”
Phase II of the Water Project was approved by the West Virginia Infrastructure and Jobs Development Council (IJDC) during their last meeting, Ashley said.
The Weimers Dam part of Phase I has been approved, but is still under the Construction Phase. Due to weather, the project has been on pause. Ashley said the plans are to resume construction March 15th on the dam, weather permitting.
