Roadwork will mean detours for drivers
BY ERIN O. STATTEL Staff Writer

HOLMDEL - Drivers will experience some detours due to road improvements and alterations currently under way around the access points to the Garden State Parkway.

Monmouth County Engineer Joseph Ettore and his staffwere present at theMarch 6 Township Committee meeting to outline the ongoing roadwork projects necessitated by the expansion of AT&T's Middletown facility.

"A detour due to the closures of Dwight and Red Hill roads will be in effect from April through May," Ettore said. "Dwight Road will be rerouted to Everett Road, and Red Hill Road will be diverted to Van Schoick Road to Holland Road."

Ettore added that local traffic would be permitted to use the closed roads.

"We expect the detours to be removed by the end ofMay," Ettore said. "We want to be out of there by Memorial Day."

Several residents expressed concerns over the realignment of local roads and the impact it would have on the rest of the roads.

"It seems that Middletown got the rateable and Holmdel got the extra traffic," remarked Dr. Anthony Cooper, a Holmdel resident.

Tom Savage, a fire chief with the Holmdel Fire Department, expressed concern over the height of the railroad bridge over Laurel Avenue, which is a part of the road project.

"We don't want to damage very expensive equipment trying to get underneath it," Savage said. "Is there any way that it could be raised a good 18 to 24 inches?"

Ettore responded that it was a New Jersey Transitmatter and that he could not say whether it could be done or not.

Phase two, which was started inAugust 2007, will realign Red Hill Road and Van Schoick Road, replace the traffic signal at the intersection of Dwight and Red Hill roads, re-engineer the intersection at Red Hill Road, and upgrade the signal at the intersection of theGarden State Parkway and Red Hill Road.

The contract for phase two was awarded to Green Construction Co. in June 2007 for an estimated $2.8 million price tag. The project started in August 2007 and was halted due to weather in December.

Phase one included thewidening of Laurel Avenue, upgrading the traffic light at Holland Road, and replacing the light at Laurel Avenue and Beau Ridge, and was completed in June 2001. The total cost was $2.5 million.

Ettore explained that the cost to Holmdel would be minimal since the improvements were part of the county's development agreement with AT&T.

The initial expansion and improvement plan was approved in 1997 and, according to Ettore, was processed through the planning boards inMiddletown and Holmdel as well as the Monmouth County Planning Board.