NORTH SMITHFIELD – Town officials say they understand the frustration due to Woonsocket Hill Road being temporarily closed from the Great Road side, and they say this popular route to Wright’s Dairy Farm should be reopened soon.
Town Administrator Scott Gibbs said there was a structural collapse of the road leading to a large hole.
“It had to do with the culvert, it all collapsed and got worse and worse,” he said, adding that it was one of those old steel culverts that simply rotted out.
An engineer looked at the spot and it was determined that no one should cross it, even down to a single lane, said Gibbs.
“Life safety was at risk,” he said.
Public Works Director Ray Pendergast and his team got ahead of things and did an engineering study and design on fixing the road, said Gibbs, and that’s now completed.
He said they’re aiming for an expedited process to procure bids for a contractor, using the state’s master price agreement list to shorten the time it would otherwise take with a typical process.
“A typical procurement takes time, and we don’t have time to waste here,” he said.
The contact with contractors and analysis of cost proposals will happen over a very short window of probably a week, said Gibbs. Work can’t start until June 1, he said, as the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management requires it to happen in the dry season.
“Hopefully we’ll be ready to pull the trigger quickly in early June,” he said. Acquisition of a new prefabricated culvert will hopefully happen quickly, he said.
“We’re on top of it, we’re trying to get it done as quickly as we can, but it’s much m0re catastrophic and complicated than people think it is,” he said.
To reach the Wright’s Dairy Farm and Bakery and The Wright Scoop entrance, access Woonsocket Hill Road via Providence Pike, say store owners and town officials.
How to get to Wright’s Dairy Farm and Bakery & The Wright Scoop:
From Great Road/Smithfield Road: Take Greenville Road to Providence Pike (by N. Smithfield High School), then turn down Woonsocket Hill Rd.
“We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your continued support,” says the staff at Wright’s. “We will keep everyone updated as information develops.”
