Park Street Residents Say Street Paving Is Long Overdue

Rob and Jaclyn Rothenberg have watched the surface of Park Street erode into a rutted mess over the nine years they have lived there.

So earlier this week, they joined some of their neighbors and took their problem directly to the Stratford Town Council to ask for relief.

And it appears to have worked.

After the Park Street neighbors spoke at the public comment forum preceding the Town Council meeting, several Council members told the residents they would try to make sure it makes the top of the next street paving list.

That means it won’t get done until next summer at the earliest, but it will get done.

The Town Council is currently reviewing a $6.9 million bond authorization package, which includes $500,000 for road reconstruction and $900,000 for road resurfacing.

The Park Street residents said their street deserves to get a high priority because it hasn’t been resurfaced in 65 years.

It is frequently used by motorists as part of the back road shortcut from Nichols Avenue near Wooster Middle School through to Paradise Green, which increases the traffic on it, said residents.

Add to that the cumulative effects of New England winters and numerous utility company road cuts that were covered with temporary asphalt patches, and Park Street has been left full of ruts and holes, they said.

Rob Rothenberg said one section of the street that lacks a permanent curb is also prone to erosion by rainwater, which has dug crevasses at the edge of the pavement nearly nine inches deep and threatens to undermine the asphalt.

"It’s almost like a sinkhole," he said.

Council member David Fuller (D-6) said he couldn’t say for sure that Park Street would be fixed next year, but he has asked to have it included in the next bond package.

Town Council Chairman Thomas Malloy (R-9) also promised to support their request.

Rothenberg said after speaking for his street project, he stayed for the rest of the Town Council meeting on Monday and the town business intrigued him. He said he expects to continue to attend the meetings to see how things get done.

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