Roslyn Heights Residents Fuming Over Repeat Road Construction That Resembles A 'War Zone'
ROSLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Residents in one Long Island town are furious at the waste, mess and hassles. Their neighborhood street was torn up and repaved for a second time in mere weeks.
They are asking: Whose bright idea was it to use their tax dollars this way?
CBS2's Jennifer McLogan was there Wednesday as Roslyn Heights residents were waiting for the "all clear" to pass.
They were venting their frustrations about trucks blocking their driveways, portable toilets and staging areas for heavy equipment set up on Roslyn Road near the country club.
"We honestly feel like we're in a war zone," Roslyn Heights neighbor Liza Nathan said.
Nathan said what's worse is she and her neighbors already went through all of this in September, when Locust Lane was repaved by the Town of North Hempstead.
Eight weeks later, National Grid arrived to rip up the pristine roadway to install a gas line.
"That's an outrage. Why should we have to pay twice for something?" Nathan said. "I mean, I understand the importance of our project, but get your act together. The left hand has to speak to the right hand to know what 's going on."
Just last month, CBS2 was interviewed North Hempstead's supervisor about the new law banning digging up repaved or newly constructed roads within five years.
So was this a major miscommunication? In this case, National Grid got a town permit to do its digging before North Hempstead repaved the road.
Even when governments are run efficiently, it's the careless waste of public money and resources that is most frustrating to homeowners, in a region where taxes are brutally high.
In response to CBS2's questions, North Hempstead said, yes, it will split the cost of Locust Lane repaving with National Grid. The price is still to be determined.
Resident Bo Yang said he worries about his children's safety.
"No school bus pass by," Yang said.
Added homeowner Ann Marie Schloss, "It's a huge inconvenience. It starts very early in the morning."
However, Schloss was more forgiving, saying mistakes happen and the workers are polite.
National Grid says it will comply with North Hempstead's repaving restrictions. The town pledges this will never happen again, adding another authorization layer
of road review.
The "Excavations Highway Law" that passed in December is expected to prevent another Locust Lane from occurring in the future.
