Tired of Construction? Your chance to become involved

Friends,

Friends,

A letter has been created by members of the Chamber to elected officials of Texas and the Federal Government, TxDOT, and Presidents/Vice Presidents of James Construction and PSC Construction. 

The letter is well-written, firm, and to-the-point.  Below is a copy of the letter.  IT IS FOR INFORMATION ONLY. Please do not sign it and send it by email.  It must have an original signature. 

If you would like to sign, please come by the Information Center (Log Cabin on North Main Street) and sign.  There are at least 2 full pages of signature as of Saturday, 16 May.

The letter will be mailed 27 May.  

Dear _____________________________:

THE VILLAGE OF SALADO NEEDS YOUR HELP!

Residents and business owners of Salado ask for your immediate attention in completing the Salado portion of the I-35 construction.  Our community has been very patient and very cooperative during this 5 year long construction process.  Despite this, we believe we have been forgotten. To exacerbate the problem, TxDot personnel have not been given the latitude, authority, or tools to take affirmative action to cure this problem. This has left us with no choice but to contact our elected officials.

Outlined below is a condensed account of the undue hardships this poorly scheduled and disruptive construction process has caused Salado. 

BRIDGE CONSTRUCTION

Of the four major bridges that connect the east side of Salado with the west side none have been completed. Piles of construction debris have been allowed to line both sides of the roads. Many of our school children live on the east side of Salado and go to school on the west side.  Losing the capability to utilize these bridges has caused undue hardship for our students and their families. 

ACCIDENT FATILITIES

As I am sure you are very aware, the 2484 bridge in Salado recently had a tragic fatality with the collapse of the bridge. Just a few days ago, a motorcyclist trying to exit I-35 into Salado died after hitting construction signs.  Your help is needed in completing this construction so that there will not be any more senseless highway deaths due to the Salado I-35 construction.

HIGHWAY CLOSINGS, RAMP AND LANE CHANGES

There is constant confusion for travelers on I-35 through Salado, specifically the frontage roads when exiting I-35. Constant ramp and lane changes seem to occur weekly without any appropriate warning signs or advance notices.  Main entrances to businesses are blocked for months or are shifted resulting in the interruption of business activity.  For example, one new business along a quarter mile stretch has had to deal with this construction for two years now. And during this process, the business has had the entrance changed or blocked on a monthly, if not weekly, basis.

Scheduling of the Salado project of I-35 was to be completed by the spring of 2015. The latest completion date provided by TxDot and James Construction/PSC is now late summer of 2016. That date is not acceptable and certainly not believable. We believe that work resources have been moved to other jobs or communities because of their respective size or influence.

We request that there be an immediate priority placed on the completion of the Salado I-35 project.    Since 2011, there have been 82-127 businesses that have closed or moved because of this inadequate construction process. This is unacceptable.  If James Construction/PSC is trying to shut down Salado completely, they are doing an outstanding job of it.   Portions of the construction are started and then left uncompleted, only to move to a different area and start another portion of the construction and leave that area uncompleted.  There is no linear method of completion.

We also believe that a formal review of this construction process will confirm what we have stated. Salado’s economy relies heavily on tourists visiting our community. When there is this failed construction process, the Village of Salado loses revenue as well as the State.

It is our sincere hope that you will give this historic village your much needed attention.

Yours very truly,

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