Silver Spring, MD - following concerns raised by the Greater Olney Civic Association (GOCA) and others regarding delays in repaving Georgia Avenue (MD97), Senator Roger Manno contacted State Highway Administration (SHA) to inquire into the status of the work. The segment of road at issue extends roughly from the Glenmont METRO Station to Norbeck Road (MD28) in the 19th Legislative District, was funded in part by federal stimulus dollars, and was slated for completion by the Fall, 2011. The following email from SHA Area Engineer Mark Dougherty explains the work delay:

Thank you for your inquiry regarding the MD 97 (Georgia Avenue) project.  Your constituents are correct regarding this project scheduled for completion this fall.  However, during the project operations we discovered an existing gas line that was not shown on any “as built” drawing.  The location of this gas line created a conflict with the installation of a drainage structure.  This conflict required a redesign of the drainage structure.  The time frame for redesign and procurement of a modified structure subsequently delayed the completion of the installation.  This delay impacted the grinding of the existing pavement as well as the final paving operations.  The new asphalt mix for this project is temperature sensitive.  Due to the time frames needed to perform the grinding operations prior to final paving we would not have had the required minimum temperatures.  Therefore, the State Highway Administration (SHA) has postponed the grinding and paving operations until the required temperatures needed for the pavement mix can be achieved.  The SHA will monitor the existing pavement conditions and perform required repairs until the previously mentioned final operations can be executed.  We regret any frustration and inconvenience this postponement may create.  If you have any further questions or require additional information please contact me.

Sincerely

Mark Dougherty

Area Engineer District 3

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