Residents of Forest Drive told it will be ‘at least one year’

The residents of Forest Drive apparently aren’t going to remain quiet over the condition of their road after the city’s repair work.
A dirt-hauling operation that severely damaged the road at the end of September 2014 left it in deplorable condition. Some of the residents suggested possible legal action be taken against the resident who was responsible for “truck after truck hauling dirt and passing over the road even after it was apparent that it was being damaged.”
“Last week I was here and I joked about getting a refund on our property taxes,” said Forest Drive resident Jude Leonards. “Now I’m becoming a more serious about it.”
Apparently, the “chip seal” construction done on the road, left it feeling more like a “gravel road” to some of the residents. Some said that they preferred it the way it was prior to the construction.
“I moved from the country and now I feel as though I’m living back in it,” said Leonards.
Crowley City Engineer Tim Mader said that the real issue here is “not wanting to pour asphalt onto an unproven base.”
“I would like a full year to prove that the base is strong enough before we pour the asphalt,” said Mader. “The road should go through all four seasons before we do so.”
“How about the guy who broke the road?” asked Leonards. “Shouldn’t he have to pay for these damages?”
“Who pays for it is a separate matter,” replied Mader.
“I would ask the council to go ahead and black top it now and then wait to see how it holds up,” said Leonards. “I just went to Baton Rouge one day and came back to no road.”
“That road just became a city road two years ago,” said Alderman Elliot Dore. “Let’s let the dust settle and you will have a better road eventually.”
The residents who attended the meeting said that the road was so bad they could no longer push baby strollers and kids on bikes were “coming home with skinned knees.”
“Arguably that road was in the end years of it’s useful life,” said Mayor Greg Jones. “It was starting to crack up in places even prior to the trucks causing the damage.”
“Do you see any improvement in the road?” asked Alderwoman Kitty Valdetero.
“I wouldn’t call it better,” replied Leonards.
David Meagher then approached the council.
“I’m the guy with six kids that have been beat up because of this road,” he said. “Three hundred loads of dirt is probably too much for any road to support. I just wanted to introduce myself and let y’all know I’ll be watching.”
“I have lived on Forest Drive for 32 years and we had a road that was very good,” said Debbie Dore. “We have poured money into our property for 32 years and I don’t pay taxes to live on a gravel road.
“The person who is responsible should give us the money to get our road back.”
Mader told the group that he did notice an improvement on the road the last time he checked it.
“We want you to know that this is not the finished product,” he said.
There will be more on the Crowley City Council meeting in the Thursday edition of the Crowley Post-Signal.