CR 250E Response
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
In 2001, the Winona Lake Town Council and Kosciusko County Commissioners entered into an agreement to improve County Road 250 East from the old Pennsylvania railroad tracks south to Pierceton Road. It took several years to obtain all of the easements and rights-of-way needed, with the actual construction beginning August 2007. On Sept. 10, 2008, the roadway was opened to vehicular traffic and the following day a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony took place at Lakeland Christian Academy with various state, county and town officials participating.
Little did anyone know what would lie ahead for all involved in this project. Within weeks, the road surface between the railroad tracks and Wooster Road began to show signs of cracking. The engineering firm responsible for the project was contacted to analyze the situation. It was determined that the roadway was built as engineered with the information provided by the soil engineers. Nevertheless it was failing.
A fix has been proposed at a cost of approximately $300,000 of which the town would pay 20 percent or $60,000. As this fix has been discussed by the various parties involved, County Road 250 East was shut down to vehicular traffic. During that time NIPSCO took the opportunity to relocate a gas line. At the end of that NIPSCO repair, road work was to begin.
On Sept. 3, 2009, a meeting was held at the Winona Lake Town Hall. Indiana Department of Transportation representatives agreed to hold the project open for another six to nine months so that the funding could be extended. This allowed for the decision to temporarily reopen the road until the Argonne Road project is complete. At that time 250 East will once again be closed for approximately two weeks, allowing for a temporary fix. The road will then be reopened to traffic through the winter months and monitored until next spring. In the spring, a final decision as to the scope of needed repairs will be ascertained and undertaken.
Just as each citizen is concerned about paying for something for their household and finding that it was not what was anticipated, we too are quite concerned about having spent tax dollars for a project that was not what was anticipated. The Winona Lake Town Council will be pursuing all avenues available to them in order to protect the taxpayers' financial interest in this project and, of course, to have the road appropriately repaired and opened as soon as possible. We are actively pursuing every option.
Terry A. Howie
Winona Lake Town Council President
Winona Lake, via e-mail[[In-content Ad]]
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In 2001, the Winona Lake Town Council and Kosciusko County Commissioners entered into an agreement to improve County Road 250 East from the old Pennsylvania railroad tracks south to Pierceton Road. It took several years to obtain all of the easements and rights-of-way needed, with the actual construction beginning August 2007. On Sept. 10, 2008, the roadway was opened to vehicular traffic and the following day a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony took place at Lakeland Christian Academy with various state, county and town officials participating.
Little did anyone know what would lie ahead for all involved in this project. Within weeks, the road surface between the railroad tracks and Wooster Road began to show signs of cracking. The engineering firm responsible for the project was contacted to analyze the situation. It was determined that the roadway was built as engineered with the information provided by the soil engineers. Nevertheless it was failing.
A fix has been proposed at a cost of approximately $300,000 of which the town would pay 20 percent or $60,000. As this fix has been discussed by the various parties involved, County Road 250 East was shut down to vehicular traffic. During that time NIPSCO took the opportunity to relocate a gas line. At the end of that NIPSCO repair, road work was to begin.
On Sept. 3, 2009, a meeting was held at the Winona Lake Town Hall. Indiana Department of Transportation representatives agreed to hold the project open for another six to nine months so that the funding could be extended. This allowed for the decision to temporarily reopen the road until the Argonne Road project is complete. At that time 250 East will once again be closed for approximately two weeks, allowing for a temporary fix. The road will then be reopened to traffic through the winter months and monitored until next spring. In the spring, a final decision as to the scope of needed repairs will be ascertained and undertaken.
Just as each citizen is concerned about paying for something for their household and finding that it was not what was anticipated, we too are quite concerned about having spent tax dollars for a project that was not what was anticipated. The Winona Lake Town Council will be pursuing all avenues available to them in order to protect the taxpayers' financial interest in this project and, of course, to have the road appropriately repaired and opened as soon as possible. We are actively pursuing every option.
Terry A. Howie
Winona Lake Town Council President
Winona Lake, via e-mail[[In-content Ad]]
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