Laurel Grove Road to be Closed for Construction

Mayor Daniel Drew has announced that due to the proposed Reconstruction of Laurel Grove Road, the section of Laurel Grove Road between Randolph Road and Wadsworth Street will be closed to through traffic between Wednesday May 9th and Tuesday May 15th, 2012, weather permitting. Traffic will be impacted between 7:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. During this period, except for Sunday May 13th when no work is planned for this day. Construction will be confined to the northern section of Laurel Grove Road near the intersection of Wadsworth Street. Local traffic to properties on Laurel Grove Road will be allowed, but motorists should expect delays during this construction.

Through traffic that normally would use this section of Laurel Grove Road is encouraged to use alternate routes around the construction site such as Long Lane and Long Hill Road (Middletown) to the east or Main Street (*Route 157) and Cherry Hill Road (Middlefield) to the west.

Anyone with questions on this project can contact Robert Dobmeier of the City of Middletown's Public Works Department at (860) 344-3412 for more information.

[signed by Mayor Dan Drew]

Brush Pick Up Press Release

City of Middletown Public Works Department
245 Dekoven Drive
Middletown, CT 06457
860-344-3407
www.cityofmiddletown.com

NEWS RELEASE
For more information
Contact Public Works Department at 860-344-3407

City of Middletown Snow Storm Damage –
Brush Collection Guidelines

Mayor Sebastian Giuliano announced that the City of Middletown Public Works
crews will collect storm related brush at no charge from all residences in Middletown.
Brush and wood debris can be placed neatly at the curb for collection. Crews will be
collecting storm debris through the month of November. Residents do not need to call
for collection. Crews will be circulating through the City for automatic pickup.

Brush can also be brought to the Middletown Recycling Center for no charge. The
Recycling Center is located on the corner of Johnson St and North Main St and is open
Monday – Friday 7:00 am – 3pm and every Sat. in November 7am – 12 noon.

Questions can be directed to the Public Works Department at 860-344-3407.

Graffiti Season

It's a reliable harbinger of Spring: downtown has sprouted a new crop of graffiti.

Over the past few weeks I've been snapping photos of the recent graffiti tags on walls, signs and utility boxes. I've been meaning to send them over to Public Works for a clean-up punch list.

But yesterday, I was thrilled to see that some of the graffiti has already been removed! Billy Russo, the City's Director of Public Works, confirmed that his painting crew has been cleaning up on public property as the weather permits (call Public Works at (860) 344-3407 to report graffiti on public property, and don't forget to call the Police and ask them to do a report (860) 347-6941.)

Here's a before and after shot for you, from the corner of Washington & Pearl. The first photo is from February 12th; the second is from the 24th:





















Wesleyan has been on top of the clean up too -- here's William Street from the same dates.











Last year I wrote several articles about graffiti, and I learned that there are lots of ways to remove the tags, especially if you act quickly. There's even a product that blocks graffiti. It's a clear barrier which can be used to cover walls that are frequent targets for vandals, so that graffiti can just be hosed off with water -- it's available at National Paint & Wallpaper on Washington St.

I wish that the folks who run Hamlin Court on College Street had been lucky enough to cover their wall before this happened:



So why is this news? Because cleaning graffiti up quickly is one of the best deterrents to repeat offenses. There may be an increase in the short term, but eventually the perpetrators will get caught, or will tire of having their work erased.

The worst thing we can do is just let it sit there. Here's hoping that quick clean-up is the new trend!

Now you see it, Now you don't!

Anyone recognize the scene in this picture? I was so excited to see this completely blank wall this evening, that I drove back around to take a photo just for you.

Need a hint? Here's what it looked like before.



That's right! After 11 months, the graffiti on Hartford Avenue has been cleaned off. It took the combined actions of the Mayor's office, the Downtown Business District, the Police and the Department of Public Works -- but eventually, the state Department of Transportation came and painted it over.

Perhaps there are cynics among our readers who think it's easy to get rid of graffiti, or that it doesn't matter since it might just get tagged again tomorrow. But -- and you can hum America the Beautiful here -- I'm glad to live in a town where people care enough to stick with the messy, boring work of getting this stuff done. So here's my public thank you to Billy Russo, Mayor Seb, Marie Kalita Leary, Karen Atwell, Police Chief Baldoni and even Mr. Spitola of the D.O.T.

To me, it's a sign that we might just be tenacious to make this whole thing work. We just have to stick with it. There's certainly plenty of other graffiti in town for us to practice on!

Bike Racks on Main Street!

Here's something we can check off on our "TO DO" list.

This morning, the Department of Public Works is installing two bike racks downtown, one at the corner of Court and Main and the other at the corner of Liberty and Main.

The racks were donated by Harding Development, the owners of Liberty Square (home of It's Only Natural Market) and Riverview Center (Amici's, etc.).

One step closer to making downtown bike-friendly. Thanks to all who made this possible!

Road Construction in Middletown

Wadsworth Street and Country Club Road are slated to have major paving projects this summer, according to Bob Daubmeier, at Middletown Public Works.

The Country Club Road project is to re-surface and straighten a series of curves between the 4-corners intersection at Ballfall, and Knox Boulevard. This project went through Inland Wetlands nearly 2 years ago, because this section of the road crosses wetlands, in fact it passes between two detention ponds in the course of this long block. Work began last summer, with the felling of large trees and the installation of a few storm drains, but was delayed because of buried fiber optic cables owned by SNET. Daubmeier told me that the project should start again within a month. Country Club is considered a major artery between I91 and Rte 217, and thus the State is footing the bill.

The Wadsworth Street project is to resurface the entire stretch from Rte 157 to Pine Street. This is part of the same project as last year's Farm Hill and Russell Street repaving; this project is paid for by the City of Middletown. The DeRita construction firm is doing this project, DeRita's on-site construction manager told me that the total cost of the project was around $800,000.

The Country Club Road and Wadsworth projects will improve storm drainage, and the Country Club Road project will straighten the road somewhat. Neither project will otherwise change the character of the streets, which will remain without sidewalks or bicycle lanes.

Below are some pictures of the Wadsworth project:

Can Do Attitude Still Absent

Last week the Common Council voted to approve new sanitation regulations regarding garbage pick-up and recycling. The new regulations are available from the Public Works Department. They state that cans must be removed from curbside within 24 hours of pick-up. Unfortunately the regulations don't say how far the cans should be moved from the curb. Other communities insist that cans be removed from the front of houses, and be out of sight from the street.

Several tenants and landlords simply move the cans directly across the sidewalk and store them in front of the house. Some have created "garbage can blinds" with fencing or hedges in their front yards.

Still others, like these Wesleyan-owned residences have not removed the cans, despite complaints, from the curbs for two semesters.



Which proves that words on paper don't solve the problem. There has to be a will in the Public Works department to solve the problem. Public works director William Russo vowed at that council meeting to make the curbside cans go away, but it hasn't happened yet.

Garbage Cans to Disappear

The Common Council passed a resolution to approve new sanitation rules and guidelines Monday night, but not before they got an earful about garbage can scofflaws.

Church Street resident Elizabeth Emery urged the Council to tighten rules to prevent residents from leaving garbage cans on the curb all week long (a complaint recently aired here).

"Look at that gas station on Broad and William Streets," she complained. "The garbage cans are never taken in."

During questions to departmental directors, council member Robert Santangelo directed a similar query to Public Works director William Russo.

"When we get a complaint we take care of it right away," Russo said.

Santangelo claimed that his wife had complained several times on the topic without results.

"Maybe she was dialing the wrong number," Santangelo joked. "I know this is a problem because I used to have a neighbor across the street who never took the cans in, until the house burned down. At Page and Warner (the gas station on Broad and William), you heard a member of the public testify that the cans have been on the curb how long? Three years!"

"Between the health department and me," Russo finally vowed in exasperation. "We will be out on the street tomorrow and address every garbage can issue on the streets."

After the meeting Russo promised to take immediate action on any complaints his department receives about garbage cans left on the curb on days other than collection days. His office can be reached by calling 344-3408, or by email william.russo@cityofmiddletown.com.

More Graffiti and a Mugging: New Gang Activity in Middletown?

The following "Public Safety alert" came in on the email today, from Wesleyan's Public Safety office:

Middletown Police have advised Public Safety that on Sunday 3/29/09 at approximately 12:30pm a non-university person was robbed in the area of High St and Huber Ave. According to Middletown Police the victim was approached by an individual who displayed a weapon and demanded money. After being given the victim's wallet the subject fled from the area.

The subject is described as an African-American or Hispanic male, between the ages of 18-21, 5' 7'' tall, weighing approximately 175 lbs. with light facial hair and a lip ring. The subject was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and grey sweat pants with a red oval logo on the side.

Anyone with any information on this incident is asked to call the Middletown Police at 860-344-3200.

Public Safety reminds all community members to report suspicious people or activity to our office at 860-685-2345 or Middletown Police at 860-344-3200.

Yes, you read that correctly: 12:30 p.m. In other words, in the middle of the day. I called Public Safety this afternoon to confirm this, and a friend emailed Public Safety right around the same time. Both inquiries revealed that the information was, in fact, correct. The robbery took place a half hour after noon yesterday, Sunday.

This disquieting event occurs on the heels of a spate of new graffiti in the neighborhood south of campus along High Street, Beach Street, Home Avenue, and McCarthy Park, much of which is being created by individuals referring to themselves as "3D". Several younger acquaintances tell me that "3D" stands for "three desperadoes". A google search for "3D" and "three desperadoes" [and "desperados"] turns up nothing in the way of gangs, so perhaps it is just a local group of miscreants looking for creative new ways to deplete the Public Works and Police Department budgets. One of the targets of the spray paint was the sign for McCarthy Park along High Street (almost directly across from Huber Ave.). Happily Public Works has already cleaned it off, as well as the "tags" at several of the other locations.

When I spoke with the officer at Public Safety, I asked whether they were aware of the new graffiti. He said they were.

This isn't the first time the question of graffiti and possible gang activity has been reported in the Eye. And sadly it probably won't be the last. In addition, we may be hearing more about all this soon from another source: a "Channel 3 Eyewitness News" truck was seen wrapping up a shoot this evening at the Huber-High intersection. I'm waiting on a call back from the Police Department detective bureau for any additional information. If anyone calls, I'll post an update.

Meanwhile, Helen Ubiñas had a story in yesterday's Courant about graffiti. [Correction: Actually the story was dated 11 January 2009]. She found that while graffiti is up, complaints are down. Apparently people are getting used to it. She reports that a favorite target in Hartford is the new "cable boxes". Actually, I think she's referring to the AT&T "U-Verse" boxes, which have been invading Connecticut towns in the past year.

Apparently, our shovels are not ready yet

Earlier this week we posted here about the need for Middletown to be fully prepared to take advantage of public works grants that will be forthcoming from the Obama administration.

Obama has already indicated that they will be looking for "shovel-ready" projects which will create jobs, move the country toward alternative-energy and transportation, foster sustainability, and help repair a crumbling infrastructure.

We've already had a few suggestions, which we will highlight in a future post, but one response, from Common Council member David Bauer, suggests that Middletown may be left out in the cold.

A report published this month The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities suggests that the state already has just more than 1300 such projects reported by 94 municipalities, with project costs at just $2.6 billion. These are projects which are all ready to go, except for funding.

Unfortunately, Middletown has not listed any projects with the CT Conference of Municipalities, yet.

We urge our town leaders to consider how Middletown can take advantage of the public works dollars that will become available in the early days of the Obama administration.

Shovel-ready projects

As you know, when Barack Obama hits the White House, he plans to initiate a massive public works project which will reinvigorate the economy.

He's already put out the word that he's looking for "shovel-ready" projects.

According to at least one editorial in the Hartford Courant, by Ned Lamont, the state is ill-prepared to accept money for these kinds of projects. While another two editorials suggest that creating alternative transportation solutions is something that would help the state.

Certainly, we shouldn't pour good money after bad into an expansion of an interstate highway system which forms the backbone of a transportation system which is antiquated and wasteful. What's more, at least in this state, it seems likely that such a move would only enrich contractors in a system which seems rigged to perpetuate the livelihood of asphalt-spreaders and roadway contractors who are intimately connected to the state bureaucracy.

In Middletown, there's already a proposal on the table to build a trolley line down Main Street. It fits perfectly the standards which Obama has proposed for an infrastructure project which will have future benefits, help the economy, and free us from the constraints of an fossil-fuel economy.

There have to be other ideas like this that Middletown can address readily. What projects should the mayor, and the Common Council work to make "shovel-ready" immediately. If ever there was a cause for which our political and community leaders should work toward with great haste, this is it.

We'll publish all reasonable suggestions for infrastructure, green, progressive projects Middletown should tackle. Leave your comments.

Graffiti again

Looks like I'm not the only one who thinks graffiti is a serious problem. MSNBC just posted this story about a study which showed that graffiti leads to more littering and theft.

There sure is a lot of graffiti in Middletown lately. Some of these "tags" (graffiti signatures) are probably done by bored "kids", and some appear to be the work of organized crime (gangs).

But my real issue with graffiti is that it says to the bad guys: "Hey, we're open for business here in Middletown." It says that this community looks the other way when things go wrong. And that's a slippery slope.

Would you like to stop seeing so much graffiti in Middletown?

There actually IS something you can do.

First: Click on the Tags in Middletown photo collection on Flickr (if you're new to Flickr, you'll have to register -- it's easy and free). The Tags in Middletown group shows photos of local graffiti from the last few months. Click on the word "Map" to see where each photo was taken (geo-tagged).

Second: If you see any graffiti, and it's not already on the Flickr page, then take a digital photo and send it by email to mieyejen@gmail.com. I'll make sure it gets up on Flickr.

This database is a tool to help local police track graffiti tags as they appear, and to be sure that the Public Works department knows when public property has been vandalized and needs clean-up. Both departments are aware of the pictured graffiti on this website -- hopefully, cleanup is coming soon. Last year, there were some graffiti arrests. This year, someone was even caught in the act.

Graffiti is one of those things you get used to, and which seems to multiply if it is not removed quickly. Depressingly, there are about 80 pieces of graffiti on the Tags in Middletown page right now, and as far as I know, only one has been cleaned so far(that was on private property). I don't know about you, but I think we can do a better job.

Shiny Sidewalks

If sidewalks are your bag, you probably noticed the recent work crews in downtown Middletown.

Over the past several years, the City replaced the old brick pavers on Main Street with a red brick pattern stamped on concrete. The old pavers had a bad habit of popping up and getting kicked around the sidewalk, opening the City up to lawsuits and a general perception of decay. The new stamped concrete seems to be working pretty well, but can sometimes be slippery when wet. So Public Works is spreading a sealant with a non-skid surface, which also serves as the annual maintenance on the stamped concrete. They'll be done with the work this week.

Tag You're It - part 2

Graffiti really bothers me.

I think that it tells people who want to commit various crimes that Middletown is Open for Business. I do not think it is a beautification issue. I think it is a public safety issue.

Even if some of the graffiti is just vandalism and is not linked to a larger gang problem, I think that leaving it up shows that we tolerate a high level of uncivil behavior -- and I think that's the wrong message.

Last year the Downtown Business District (DBD) and the Central Business Bureau (CBB) focused a lot of energy on this problem. The police caught some of the people doing the graffiti, they were prosecuted, assigned community service, then we (the DBD) bought the product to clean the graffiti, and supervised the people who were caught as they did their community service cleaning up the tags in the downtown. This took a lot of effort and attention on the part of several people: Marie Kalita Leary (Downtown Manager), Vinnie Amato (for pressing for a process of having those caught do the clean-up), the Downtown Guides (particulary Dennis), and Police Chief Baldoni and the downtown beat cops and lots of others. Eventually, all the graffiti in the DBD and Main Street corridor was removed, unless a building owner refused help.

Of course, eventually, when the warm weather returned, the grafitti came back. But this year, it's not appearing in the areas that are covered by those organizations -- and any graffiti that DOES appear in the DBD is quickly cleaned by the Downtown Guides. Instead, the graffiti runs in a ring around the Main Street area.

At this point, much of the graffiti is on public property -- such as street signs and those electrical boxes (not sure who is really in charge of those.) In early Spring this year, my kids and I compiled a list of all the graffiti we could find, which we gave to the Police, and we gave Public Works and Wesleyan a list of the graffiti on their property -- and both did clean some of it up (for example, under the highway bridges on DeKoven/East Main in the photos from the earlier post on this subject). But now there is a lot more and we seem to have some very persistent taggers. There's no doubt that when it comes to graffiti, when you clean it up, it will get replaced and this escalates until one side gives up -- and unfortunately, we seem to be the ones who have given up. I think part of the problem is that it costs time and money for Public Works to clean up graffiti -- and if you don't check it EVERY DAY then the clean-up is not as effective as it might be. Also, I know the police have done various stake-outs and other methods to try to catch more of the perpetrators, but as you can imagine, it's a little random. In cases of continued re-tagging, like the electrical box across from the Synagogue, I wonder if a camera might be useful. So, it's important for citizens to be advocating for graffiti clean-up and to ask the Mayor to support Public Works and the Police in making this a priority.

I'd welcome any suggestions that anyone has about how to tackle this problem.

As for the few private property owners who have graffiti on their buildings, like the gas station on South Main shown in the last post, anyone reading this is welcome to stop by those businesses and ask them to please paint over the graffiti -- it's been there a long time. And if they haven't reported to the police that they have been the victim of vandalism, then they should do that -- but it's time to move ahead and clean up the mess.

(Photos: Pearse Pinch)