Residents Express Concern About Loss of Yard Space
Two Burton Village residents told village council March 9 they were dismayed to discover that no part of the road they live on is actually in the village.
Two Burton Village residents told village council March 9 they were dismayed to discover that no part of the road they live on is actually in the village.
Because Peckham Road is scheduled to be repaved and widened this summer, they and their neighbors could lose at least four feet of their front yards in the process.
Peckham Road lies in Burton Township. Until recently, Greg McCandless said he believed the west half of the north-south road was part of the village.
“I’ve lived there since 1997. All our neighbors thought Peckham was split right down the middle,” he said.
Village Road Superintendent Rick Smigelski said that misconception is common. The village plows Peckham in exchange for the township plowing some village streets.
“We have maps. They’re not very precise,” said Mayor Ruth Spanos. “What (the township) is doing is within the right-of-way. We can’t tell them they can’t do it. It’s not our road.”
Peckham runs from state Route 87 to Goodwin Avenue, according to the Geauga County Auditor’s Office website.
The county engineer’s office is responsible for the road’s design. Kevin Freeman, a village resident whose driveway ends in the township, said the county has decided to widen the 18-foot-wide road by two feet, including a one-foot-wide berm. If the drainage swale must be expanded, residents’ lawns will be affected.
“The big thing is (it’s) all happening on our side,” McCandless said. “There will not be a lot of room between the road and my front door.”
Shane Hajjar, with the Geauga County Engineer’s Office, said March 16 the road may be widened by three feet for a total width of 21 feet, including a one-foot berm. The swale may not need expansion.
The east side of Peckham is higher than the road surface and would have to be cut way back to add a foot or more on that side, he said.
In addition, utility poles would have to be moved back, Hajjar said.
Burton Township Trustee Ken Burnett said March 16 Freeman and McCandless raised concerns with the trustees two weeks ago but were told the board would follow the engineer’s recommendations.
“I’ve been a trustee for 16 years and we’ve done nothing but patch Peckham Road,” he said, adding the road gets a lot of traffic, especially during The Great Geauga County Fair.
“I’d love to keep it narrow. It would cost less to pave it,” Burnett said. “We want to do what’s best for the community.”
Freeman said the project is expected to go out for bids April 1, with work beginning around June 1.
Hajjar attended the Burton Township Trustees meeting March 16 to discuss preliminary plans for resurfacing Erwin Drive and Peckham Road, which he said is in poor to fair condition.
“It’s been patched and kind of glued together,” he said, noting the edges of the asphalt have broken away, making the navigable surface even more narrow.
“It’s due for some rehabilitation,” Hajjar said. “The lightly-paved road is narrow for two vehicles to pass.”
Trustee Dan Whiting said Peckham sees a fair amount of heavy truck traffic from industry in Middlefield Township.
The confusion about the location of the road has been sorted out, Hajjar said.
“Our surveyor has been out and located all the monuments,” he said. “It is within the township’s right to make improvements to the roadway.”
Freeman said he will walk the road with trustees and the engineer when weather allows. Hajjar acknowledged it may seem unfair to add pavement only on the west side but said it is the most cost-effective option.
Burnett said trustees want a good relationship with Peckman residents but must consider finances.
“We have to be fiscally responsible. If it costs $100,000 more to go on the east side of the road, we’re not doing that,” he said.
Preliminary estimates for paving 0.4 miles of Peckham Road to 21 feet are $230,000. Erwin Drive repaving is estimated at $120,000, Hajjar said.
He recommended any adjustments be addressed at the next trustees meeting.
“The sooner we put this out to bid and move on with the projects, the more likely this will happen in a preferred construction window,” he said.
Whiting said the work must be completed before fair week or delayed until afterward, since Peckham is a common shortcut to the back of the Geauga County Fairgrounds.
