Pride Of Place Issue

Atkins Corner roundabouts on a dreary morning

The venerable Amherst Select Board -- keepers of the public way -- got an earful last night about the condition of the double roundabouts at Atkins Corner by a neighborhood woman who cited weeds, dead plants and overall dreariness, closing with "It's all very unattractive."

And I have to admit next to the UMass roundabout at Eastman Lane and North Pleasant Street they certainly do pale by comparison.

 UMass roundabout on a sunny Sunday morning

Like Police and Fire, DPW staffing is severely stretched to the limit.  And in the past few years their kingdom has expanded to include these $6 million dollar roundabouts and of course all of Kendrick Park.

Select Board member Connie Kruger stated she was "Also very disappointed.  It's a gateway and it's embarrassing."

Ms. Kruger also hinted that perhaps Atkins Country Market and Hampshire College could step up and maybe "adopt" the roundabouts and show them some Tender Loving Care.

 Atkins Corner from 400 feet: Epstein's Pond on the right

Double Vision

 West Street/Country Corners Road X 2

So yes, this is what you get when two expensive state road projects butt up against each other:  the current $3.1 million road straightening project for The Notch and the $6 million dollar Atkins Corner roundabout project from last year where West Street and Country Corners Road seemed to be a point of overlap.

Well at least residents of Country Corners Road will have no problem finding their street.
  

Weeds Grow In South Amherst

The two roundabouts at Atkins Corner are already going to seed.  Hey, what do you expect for a lousy $6 million.

The property is still in that netherworld where the contractor -- Baltazar Contractors Inc -- is finishing up a "punch list" of final details before the state Department Of Transportation accepts the work and then turns over responsibility of the turf to the town.

I'm told town officials are hoping Atkins Country Market and Hampshire College "adopt" the islands of green space.  After all, it is their front yard.

Slow Climb

 These signs spring up like mushrooms on a moist summer morning

If business takes you further south past Atkins Country Market by way of Route 116, be prepared for a slow bumpy ride up The Notch.

Yes, construction continues in the southernmost part of Amherst where the state has expended $10 million in the past two years installing two roundabouts and now this realignment project.

 

Country Corners Road, Amherst

C & A Construction from Ludlow was the low bidder at $3,128, 938 coming in under the state's "initial construction estimate" of $3, 354, 684.  The project started last fall with the clear cutting of trees and is currently less than 20% completed.   Completion is not expected until the spring of 2014.

 Start of the .6 mile climb

In other words, it's going to be a l-o-n-g hot summer for travelers trying to negotiate that gauntlet.

 

 

New section of road center, old road on left

Near top, new road on right

Editors note:  This photo shoot occurred after 5:00 PM when construction was done for the day 

UPDATE Wednesday afternoon:  Arrived at base of mountain at 1:47 PM and made the summit at 1:58 PM.  Once I started moving, total time for climb was three minutes.

A Lot Off The Top

 Asplundh Tree Service on the top of The Notch

The l-o-n-g promised realignment of the The Notch (Route 116/West Street) seems to be finally underway as contractors have clear cut sections near the top in preparation for the $3.1 million road straightening project, thanks to earmarks secured by outgoing Congressman John Olver, D-Mass.

The project is contiguous with the $6 million Atkins Corner double roundabout project completed this past summer.

South Hadley side of The Notch 

West side of Route 116 going up The Notch

 1333 West Street, bottom of The Notch.  Congressman John Olver's 15 acre estate

West side bottom of The Notch

Mt Holyoke State Park (cream color)

Atkins Corner: Getting There

First roundabout 

First Roundabout 11/20/11

West Street in front of Hampshire College now paved

Parking lot in front of Atkins graded

Not Ready For Prime Time

Yes, the barriers have come down around Atkins Corner and the extensive detour signs have all been covered with black executioner hoods, but the electronic road sign on the busy section of West Street leading into the mess this morning still says "Road Closed Ahead."

When they get around to changing it perhaps "Travel at your own risk" would be a better statement. Because not too far down the road the pavement ends as the stretch of road immediately in front of the main entrance to Hampshire College is still torn up.

The first roundabout was usable a couple months ago and the center greenspace could already use  mowing.

And foot traffic around the new second roundabout? Forget about it.

Yes, after surviving the dusty gauntlet you can still find Atkins Farms Country Market, just don't dawdle in their front yard.

With the masses set to return to our college town in a couple weeks, let's hope Baltazar works double time to "finish" this important project.

Main Street Molasses

 Main Street Gauntlet

If you are heading all the way to the top of Pelham Hill from Amherst town center you now have to negotiate a new--yet another--road construction project that started today:  Resurfacing Main Street, which of course leads directly to Amherst Road.

And yes, Amherst Road is closed during weekday business hours for a sewer line construction project.

Warner Brothers won the bid for the Main Street renovation, and like almost all the projects around town it's expected to be completed by the end of the month.  The town is using Community Development Block Grant funds ($ from heaven) to pay for it.   

Meanwhile everyone keeps saying Atkins Corner second roundabout will be open for traffic by August 15.  But then town officials also said the War Memorial Pool would be open June 23rd, then June 30, then... stopped making predictions.

Let's hope this time they are correct.

Malfunction Junction

 Malfunction Junction, Manchester, VT

If a roundabout or two is good enough for those common sense Yankee types who inhabit Manchester, Vermont, then I have high hopes for our own pair at Atkins Corner, now supposedly slated to open for traffic by August 15. 

Although it seems Amherst is well ahead of Manchester when it comes to construction speed.  Go figure.

Construction Continues

In addition to the Atkins Corner reconstruction in South Amherst, the sudden bridge closing in North Amherst, now we have East Amherst joining the growing list of projects bringing headaches to commuters.

The town is closing off Amherst Road during weekday business hours for the sewer line extension up into Pelham.  The state is also scheduled to renovate/replace the Pelham Road Bridge which is located at the half-way point along the sewer line project. 

And yes, we still have the Snell Street Bridge replacement coming soon in the western part of Amherst closing off that busy road.  Let's hope they do not all converge into one BIG perfect, dusty, storm.

Can't get there...

Mill Street Bridge

The town just closed Mill Street Bridge near Puffers Pond in North Amherst for an indefinite period.  Not that it will inconvenience any businesses out that way since the bridge is pretty out of the way, and one can still walk or bike across it.

 South Amherst Village Center

Meanwhile nicer signs have appeared around South Amherst advertising Atkins Farm Country Market and how to get there. The Atkins Corner construction/destruction has reached the farthest point north, passing the main entry to Hampshire College.  Now maybe they will get a tiny taste of what Atkins has endured these past few months.  

Lower West Street (RT 116) just above main entry to Hampshire College 

Hampshire College is not in session during the summer but they do rent out their facilities for summer camps.  Perhaps that's the main reason they decided not to aid Atkins by allowing a simple, easy cut through campus from Rt 116 over to West Bay Road to come within a frisbee toss of Atkins.  Now of course you have to drive miles out of the way to get there.

Unfortunately,  when faced with those extra miles, more than a few customers go elsewhere.   And every customer counts--especially at this time of the year.

Puffers Pond dam shot from Mill Street Bridge (and not from my car)

Well this should stimulate business (depending on how large his staff is)

An Inconvenient Truth

When the $6 million Atkins Corner double roundabout construction project finally finishes late this summer the current resulting traffic snafus will quickly fade into a distant memory.  Over the next few weeks, however, they will be as fresh and raw as the fruits and vegetables sold at everyone's favorite local destination spot, Atkins Farm Country Market.

Friday marked the first day of 'The Big Detour' and things went about as well as could be expected considering the magnitude and location of the disruption.  Atkins manager John Thibbitts confirms "a few customer complaints" but the iconic store is doing additional in-store promotions, Facebook updates, and old fashioned print advertising to offset the current less-than-ideal conditions and to keep loyal fans coming back for more. 

Neighbors near the main Hampshire College main entry on RT116 called Amherst police Friday afternoon as a "distraught, very angry and disoriented blonde lady" seemed to be having a nervous breakdown over the blockade.

Still, no accidents or major incidents.  Or...no news is good news.

 

One of the two roundabouts is up and running

 

Work continues on the second roundabout at Bay Road intersection

 

Meanwhile, some bright news for Atkins: the solar array is now fully operational

 

Form Based Zoning Fails...Again

Roundabout in front of Atkins Country Market

The second attempt to change the zoning in South Amherst to a form based code that would allow denser development once again managed to garner a majority of Amherst Town Meeting support, but article #24 fell short of the two-thirds vote required for passage, 130-78. 

This solid setback all but guarantees a follow up failure for bringing form based zoning to North Amherst under article #25.

Bullseye

Roundabout in front of Atkins Country Market

The Atkins Corner Roundabouts are coming into their own and should start seeing traffic by this time next year (although the occasional after dark confused driver has already tread on them).

And the new bypass connecting West Street over to West Bay Road has been in use, without any problems, for a while now.

By pass over to West Bay Road (shortcut to Applewood Retirement Community or Eric Carle Museum)

The scuttling of Form Based Zoning for this part of town will probably have no impact on Atkins as the nifty new infrastructure makes it all the more easy to deliver shoppers directly to their front door. But I'm sure they would loved to have had a clustered development or two spring up nearby where folks could actually live within walking distance.

Just another lucrative sunny Sunday at Atkins

My sniper perch

Death Row Pardon!

Black Walnuts near Hampshire College main entrance

So it's hard to believe after all the trees the state has whacked for the Atkins Corner Project that these four beauties, otherwise known as black walnuts, were about to be sacrificed as well: "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot," or in this case a multi-use path more commonly referred to as a "bike path."

Yikes! The Amherst Shade Tree Committee would have impaled some town and state officials with the splintered remains.

But just in the nick of time Hampshire College rode their white horse to the rescue by granting the town a permanent easement on their property for a reconfiguration of the multi-use path, thus saving the four black walnuts. Three cheers for Hampshire College.

Now if we could just get them to contribute towards police and fire protection from the town, I would send my daughters there someday. (Well, maybe not.)

DPW Chief Guilford Mooring avoids the hot seat (for now)