The mayor and other town and school dignitaries were present Thursday, Oct. 25 for the official ribbon-cutting that opened the Batchelder Road causeway, which had been closed for repairs since last June.
Over the summer and through the fall, the causeway underwent significant repairs that were necessary due to years of heavy use and flooding damage.
The old roadway was down to one lane use and a narrow walkway. Along with a new roadway and a 5-foot sidewalk, the project also involved lowering the pond water level by 3 feet, as well as creating a retaining wall to help prevent future flood damage, providing stability to the road and returning the use of both lanes. In addition, streetlights and wooden guardrails for pedestrians were added for safety. Both the school and the town of Windsor contributed to the funding of the project.
"It's amazing what a great improvement the new causeway is," noted the mayor. "Safety was always our biggest concern and working with the school has continued the great relationship that we share in addressing these concerns."
Loomis Chaffee Chief Financial Officer Chris Wejchert commented that the prior causeway served the school and town well for 90 years, but the new causeway with its sidewalk will greatly enhance safety for students, townspeople and other pedestrians, as well as vehicles driven by and transporting students. In addition to thanking mayor Don Trinks and the town council, he also thanked Peter Souza, town manager, Tom Lenehan, town engineer, and Ed Kirk, Loomis's director of physical plant, for their hard work and cooperation for their work and oversight of the project.