The reconstruction of State Street in Hillsdale is completed, save for one issue concerning changes made to a resident’s yard during the months-long process.
Though the project’s completion was delayed several times, it is now basically complete, said City Manager Linda Brown. In addition to allowing drivers around the area to use State Street again, the completion of the project will also help voters choose if they want to see other streets similarly refurbished, Brown said.
At this week’s Hillsdale City Council meeting, Mayor Doug Moon said that he was also pleased with the end result and has heard many compliments.
But the council wasn’t quite done with State Street yet. Two weeks ago, State Street resident and neighbor of Moon, Ed Crouch, said that the street adjustment necessitated by the project had rendered part of his yard too steep to mow without a retaining wall. At that meeting, the council approved a resolution to wait another two weeks to come to a decision on what to do about it.
This week, project engineers Keith Richard and Matt Taylor presented what they said was a compromise solution that included an additional retaining wall.
“There are still some challenging grades in the yard, especially nearest to the ramp. It would be hard to mow that with a riding mower, but not as bad for a push mower,” said Richard.
Taylor, for his part, said that he considered the compromise a success.
“If you pulled out a topo[graphical] survey before this project, it would show the steepest grades with a one foot fall by three-and-a-half feet horizontal. Our goal was not to exceed that. And we did that. There’s more of the steepest grade, but nothing steeper,” Taylor said.
Crouch himself still said that a wall is a necessity.
“The hill itself is almost two times bigger than before. I wouldn’t want to take my rider down it at all. The bottom line is that I was able to mow my whole lawn with a rider before the project moved the street, but now I can’t.”
Councilman Brian Watkins then made a motion to approve the compromise proposal, including the wall and its associated costs which are estimated by Taylor at $5,300. The motion failed, 5-4.
Moon then gave each councilperson a “homework” assignment: to find a solution.
jbutler@hillsdale.edu
