Why Would The City Bother To Tell Us About Any Of This?

Preparing to replace gas lines
in the 700 block of Columbia Street

You may have noticed that National Grid's gas line replacement project has been in full swing along Green Street for the past week or so. In addition to the traffic delays and no parking being allowed on all of Green Street, as of yesterday all the metered parking spaces along Columbia Street between Park Place and 8th Street on both sides of the street are blocked off for the continuation of the project. There is no indication anywhere as to how long the Columbia Street work will last or when it will begin in earnest.

Meanwhile, the gas line project in the 200 block of State Street which began about two months ago is, as I have recently reported, still continuing at a snail's pace.  When there is activity there, National Grid is doing that work, unlike on Green Street where they have hired a contractor to do the work.  Today at noon, I saw no activity on State Street, and it looked as if since last Friday the back hoe had not moved and the hole in the street hadn't changed.  Still there, wide open and partially full of water, untouched by the backhoe.  The 2-foot wide line of removed asphalt along the entire block is still there, much of it well sunken and dangerous.  Whatever!  It can wait! 

Not today, and not yesterday

There has still been no mention of either of these street work projects on the city's website or during Robert Perry's monthly DPW council reports.  Traffic congestion and delays, traffic flaggers, big clouds of dust from a pavement saw, lots of noisy large machinery and dump trucks, workers everywhere, streets closed and torn up, gas lines being replaced to buildings, cones everywhere, large and deep holes in the street, parking prohibited, parking on a torn up street, and what do we get from City Hall?  Absolutely nothing!  As if none of it is happening at all, and that none of it is of interest to, or inconveniencing, anyone.

Is City Hall comatose?