MONROE, CT — First Selectman Terry Rooney says all of the town’s roads will be open for through traffic by Friday in the wake of flood damage from Sunday’s torrential rain, and paved, with the exception of Cottage Street. Meanwhile, the Connecticut Department of Transportation continues to assess Route 34, which is still closed due to extensive damage.
“We have secured additional heavy equipment that will be here on Monday to repair Cottage Street,” Rooney said Thursday. “The good thing is we’re doing our own paving, so once the infrastructure improvements are made, we can pave. The fact that we can get out of this with a paved surface is beneficial to our residents.”
If the town’s schools were to open today, Superintendent of Schools Joseph Kobza said students living at the top of Cottage Street would wait for their bus at the corner of Webb Circle and those living below would wait at the corner of Downs Road.
Rooney urges residents to call the Monroe Department of Public Works, 203-452-2814, to report any damage that is missed so the town can accurately document everything for FEMA in hopes of receiving disaster relief funds.
Though no timelines for the repair of Route 34 were released, the first selectman said he is encouraged to have seen Connecticut Department of Transportation trucks in town.
“They’re working. Hopefully, they will be on 34,” Rooney said. “I’ll reach out to the state if I feel Route 34 isn’t being done in a reasonable time frame.”
He said he has been in constant touch with members of Congress, the lieutenant governor and Monroe’s state delegation in an effort to “make the best and quickest decisions for the town of Monroe.”
Among the roadways that are open for traffic is Bagburn Hill Road, which Rooney said is good for the operation of Zenko Farm.
“We want to open our town roads, especially when businesses are affected,” he said.
On Thursday afternoon, a DPW crew performed paving on a section of Old Zoar Road. One highway man said they have been working around the clock, “rockin’ and rollin'” to open up roads to traffic as soon as possible.
“Their speed and efficiency in getting all of this work done is extremely impressive,” Rooney said.
In addition to the roadwork, Rooney said town crews have cleared all of the walking trails, though Great Hollow Lake is still not open for swimming.
Lake Zoar cleanup
In a press release, FirstLight announced the releasing of debris that has collected between the boat barrier and Stevenson Dam through the dam’s sluice gates began Thursday.
“To support the public’s ability to recreate on the river, we will avoid passing debris Friday through Sunday to enable weekend recreation,” said Claire Belanger, a spokesperson for FirstLight. “It is essential for FirstLight to begin this effort before the presence of excessive debris affects the water passageways and necessitates a larger, uncontrolled release.”
FirstLight contractors will continue working to remove larger man-made and wood debris above Stevenson Dam to prevent it from going over the dam. In coordination with the town of Monroe, FirstLight is working to stockpile the recovered man-made debris like docks and water vessels at the former Monroe Town Beach, just upstream of the Monroe Boat Launch. Affected residents should plan to recover their belongings from that area.
The first selectman shared photos of clean up operations at Lake Zoar in the gallery below:
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