I am responding to George Jaeger’s Letter to the Editor in the May 13, 2019, edition of the Addison Independent, in which he suggested several reasons for the current lull in activity on our downtown construction project. I want to point out that Middlebury’s Community Liaison, Jim Gish, addressed this question in his April 25 construction update to the community.
“You may be wondering why construction is winding down when the construction season is just getting underway. The answer has to do with the sequencing of construction contracts. Installation of the temporary bridges in Summer 2017 was one contract. Construction of the drainage system and access roads was a second contract; that one wraps up in mid-May. The third and final contract covering the main project will be awarded in May, with work scheduled to begin in the July/August timeframe.”
Jim’s update, a quick five-minute read, goes out Friday mornings to more than 1,000 readers. Jim frequently responds to reader questions in the blog so all may benefit from the knowledge. I encourage all to sign up and stay informed on developments with this important project; sing up online at middleburybridges.org.
As chair of the selectboard, I know that the selectboard and the town manager’s office respond to questions frequently as well. There are no labor disputes, there is no hold-up in federal funding for our project, and there is no unforeseen problem holding up the construction plans.
In our attempt to ensure all parties are best served, town leaders asked VTrans and general contractor Kubricky to review plans for our next construction phase with the community at a special selectboard meeting to be held Tuesday, June 4, at 7 p.m. at the Champlain Valley Unitarian Universalist Society on Charles Avenue in Middlebury. I look forward to welcoming everyone in our community with questions and concerns about the project to that meeting.
Brian Carpenter
Chair, Middlebury Selectboard