BY TIMOTHY LAROCHE
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CLAREMONT – City officials will advance a proposal to close access to a city road used as a gateway for illegal trash dumping.
City Councilors tabled a motion to reclassify a section of Half Mile Road from a Class V highway to a Class VI highway, discontinuing city maintenance of the roadway. The proposal would also install a gate across a section of the road, blocking most traffic from entering the area.
“This was a proposal put in because of staff meetings and our long frustrations because of concerns on this road,” City Manager Ryan McNutt said.
Director of Public Works Scott Sweet proposed the motion in a letter to city staff, citing repeated dumping in the area. Over the years, various efforts to stem illegal activities in the area have had little effect.
Game cameras were placed in the wooded area near the road to catch people dumping trash only to disappear later, Police Chief Mark Chase said. Other efforts to block off sections of the woods from vehicle access also proved fruitless, he said.
“In the area where people are dumping the couches and drywall, the DPW put up mounds of dirt to make it hard for them to get into there, “ Chase said. “But they still manage to go up there.”
But questions remain about the possibility that blocking vehicle access could exacerbate illegal activities in the area, Councilor Nick Koloski noted. Without vehicle access and passersby, police would have decreased patrol capabilities in the area, he said.
“I’m sure there are going to be devious acts going on behind that barred section,” Chase said.
Meanwhile, the proposal drew mixed reactions from nearby homeowners who say they use the road. Resident James Petrin, who owns property adjacent to the stretch of road that would be gated, said he supported the motion as a means to stop the dumping.
However, resident Paul Lacasse argued that the road is used as a shortcut from Jarvis Hill Road to Plains Road by many in the area, saving several miles of travel that would otherwise be directed onto Route 12A.
“It’s used by many residents. I sat out on that road and there were at least three cars per hour down that road,” Lacasse said. “To me it’s a handy shortcut and I use it all the time. I pay taxes on that to keep it open. If you don’t want to plow it, that’s fine. But keep it open.”
The council will put the motion to a vote at the next meeting to accommodate the absence of Councilor Scott Pope from Wednesday’s meeting. Chase said he will bring to the meeting police logs for calls to the road. McNutt also said he would come prepared with a more thorough cost breakdown or the proposal.
“If we’re looking at savings and expenses, I just want to know what we’re looking at,” Koloski said.
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