Williston Observer

Work to start in July, state official says

By Greg Elias
Observer staff

Roadwork that will smooth the rough ride on Interstate 89 and ease congestion at exit 12 begins this summer.

The paving project includes 16 miles on the southbound side of I-89 between Bolton and South Burlington. The exit 12 work involves lengthening the deceleration lane and adding a lane to the southbound off-ramp that leads to Vermont Route 2A.

Motorists who suffer the bruising ride while dodging ruts and potholes during their daily commute say they are eager to see the repaving completed.

“It’s like a roller coaster ride,” said Bolton resident Kelly O’Brien, who commutes on Interstate 89 between Richmond and Williston to her job as a Vermont State Police dispatcher.

The stretch of Interstate 89 was last paved less then a decade ago, said Mike Hedges, paving program manager for the Vermont Agency of Transportation. A type of asphalt designed to reduce road spray and provide better traction was used.

But the state found that the pavement, which was supposed to last for 15-20 years, has a far shorter lifespan.

“It had many useful benefits,” Hedges said. “But we found that in modern applications it has a 9- to 10-year lifespan. Then it fails dramatically.”

Indeed, the quality of the southbound drive between Williston and Richmond has deteriorated rapidly over the past year. Shallow but wide potholes pockmark the stretch between Williston and Richmond. The segment between the Williston and Shelburne Road exits also has flaws.

Both stretches are marked by grooves and washboard pavement. Vehicles occasionally kick up pieces of loose asphalt, a distraction for drivers and a danger to windshields.

Williston resident Phyllis Etienne, who sometimes drives on Interstate 89 to reach Burlington, said she has seen the rapid deterioration.

“It’s definitely noticeable,” she said. “I find myself consciously steering from one lane to another to avoid it.”

Hedges, while acknowledging that potholes could present safety issues for motorists traveling at 65 mph, said many other roads are worse. “They are not as bad as the potholes we have elsewhere,” he said.

The limited lifespan of asphalt on Interstate 89 has been a problem since the state started using the new type of pavement in the 1990s. Last year, the state had to repave a stretch of I-89 between exits 8 and 10.

Was it a mistake to use the new type of paving, which allows water to drain better but apparently doesn’t hold up in Vermont’s rugged climate?

“When we planned it, we felt it was the best available product,” Hedges said. “That’s why we put it on the interstate. We anticipated it would last longer — 15-20 years — than it did.”

About 150 miles of interstate in Vermont have been paved using the asphalt. Hedges said much of it will need to be repaved in coming years.

The work of the exit 12 off-ramp is designed to reduce traffic backups, which sporadically cause vehicles to spill out onto the traveled portion of the highway. Residents and town officials have complained that the situation is a serious hazard, as vehicles traveling at 65 mph bear down on the line of stopped cars.

The state originally planned to do the ramp work in 2006. But that timetable was accelerated after town officials and resident complained that the traffic backups amounted to an emergency safety issue and the state concluded it would make sense to combine the paving and ramp projects.

A second left-turn lane will be added to the ramp to accommodate the majority of the traffic that heads north on Route 2A. The deceleration lane leading up to the ramp will be lengthened, and the timing of traffic signals may be adjusted, Hedges said.

The ramp project will cost an estimated $500,000, Hedges said. The interstate paving will cost roughly $4 million. Federal funding will pay 90 percent of the cost of both projects.

The repaving work will start just north of the 189 interchange (where motorists exit to reach Shelburne Road) and continue south to Bolton. The state will advertise the projects in May, with bidding taking place the following month. Hedges said both the repaving and ramp work would likely begin in July. The projects are expected to take one construction season, which runs through October.

No paving will take place on the northbound side of I-89. Hedges said a northbound stretch between Richmond and Bolton was repaved two years ago.

Motorists will have to deal with congestion as a result of the work, but Hedges said the state will take steps to minimize problems. He said no paving on Interstate 89 will take place during rush hours — 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Work will largely take place off the side of the exit 12 ramp, so Hedges does not foresee major traffic issues with that project.

“I think (the workers) will be somewhat out of the way of traffic,” he said. “But there will be some disruption anyway.”

Decision clears way for new housing

By Tom Gresham
Observer staff

The largest proposed residential development in Williston history was one of eight projects to receive phasing Tuesday night under new subdivision rules governing when and how fast housing can be built.

The developments receiving phasing from the Development Review Board will likely constitute a major portion of the total residential construction in town over the next decade. In all, the board allocated 377 units for phasing to the eight projects, including 320 units for the proposed project on the Pecor horse farm on U.S. Route 2.

Town Planner Lee Nellis said “200-some” units remain available for construction in the next 10 years.

“An awful lot happened, but not everything that’s possible,” Nellis said.

The projects receiving phasing, which requires developments to be built over several years, still have permits to secure before construction can begin. The minor subdivisions need to receive final subdivision approval, while the other projects need both preliminary and final subdivision approval.

In addition to those receiving phasing, Nellis said the Selectboard had approved a settlement Monday night with Village Associates, the developer that had filed suit against the town after not receiving a sewer allocation for a large multi-use project proposed for Zephyr Lane.

Nellis said Wednesday the settlement had still not been formally filed so he could not release the agreement’s terms. However, Village Associates was removed from the list of developments seeking phasing Tuesday night, suggesting that the project, which is named “the Hamlet,” had received phasing as part of the deal.

Under the town’s new subdivision regulations, which the Selectboard approved in May, projects do not compete with every other project seeking phasing but only with proposals within the same zoning district. Projects are ranked based on how well they meet specified criteria. The criteria include affordable housing, open space and available trails and paths.

Previous rules required small subdivisions to compete for phasing against major projects, prompting the Development Review Board to send a letter to the Selectboard earlier this year expressing concern with the system. The Development Review Board waited to distribute phasing until the Selectboard had passed a new set of regulations.

“I think it’s to everyone’s advantage to be judged based on your area,” said Kevin McDermott, the Development Review Board chairman.

The still-unnamed project planned for the Pecor horse farm on U.S. Route 2 received phasing that will allow most of its proposed 356 residential units to be built over nine years starting July 1, 2006. In addition to its remaining municipal permits, the project needs to secure a state Act 250 environmental permit to move forward.

The horse farm project did not receive enough phasing for its final 36 units. Nellis said there was not enough sewer to accommodate those units, and their phasing would depend on the town acquiring more sewer capacity in the next 10 years. Unlike in past years, the projects receiving phasing Tuesday are also guaranteed sewer allocations for the units they received.

Other projects to receive phasing included the DeSarno property on Old Stage Road (two units), two subdivisions on Oak Hill Road (three units), the South Meadow project on South Road (16 units), Randy Stevens’ subdivision on South Road (five units), the Barone/Goodrich senior housing project on U.S. Route 2 and Timothy Way (14 units), and Churchview Estates, another senior housing project, which is set on Old Stage Road (17 units).

Bob Snyder, president of the Snyder Companies, one of the developers of the horse farm proposal, told the Development Review Board that the project benefited from the move to new subdivision regulations. He said certain alterations made the development “financially feasible.”

“The change to the subdivision regulations and the sewer allocation process are all very positive,” Snyder said. “The letter you sent to the Selectboard spurred them on to get moving on this. I think it was very helpful not only to us but to the town in general.”

The new regulations gave the hearing Tuesday night an uncertain air. Most of the developers seeking phasing spoke to the Development Review Board about their project, specifically addressing the criteria the board considers when ranking projects for phasing.

However, many were still unaware of the new criteria. Nellis handed out a list of the new criteria to the developers while they waited in the audience for their turn to speak.

“It’s like a pop quiz,” McDermott said.

One prominent change in the criteria was the addition of energy conservation as a topic for ranking. Most of the developers speaking Tuesday night pledged to make their residential constructions meet the energy standards of Efficiency Vermont.