Mamaroneck to Begin Tree and Sidewalk Work Sept. 29

The following release is from Mamaroneck Village Manager Richard Slingerland, outlining the community’s upcoming tree and sidewalk repair and replacement project. The program is scheduled to begin the week of Sept. 29:

Dear Neighbors and Business Persons:

The Mamaroneck Downtown tree and sidewalk repair and replacement project is ready to proceed.

1. Using our current tree maintenance contract, in August the trees where the sidewalks will be replaced were cut down to make way for the next phase of work.

2. During the summer, the Village publicly bid out this work and hired a company to demolish and remove the sidewalks around eighteen tree wells. The work under this contract will involve demolition and removal of the sidewalk, removal of the tree grate and frame with replacement of any broken sections, and removal of the stump and roots of the old trees.

3. The work to demolish and remove the sidewalks will begin during the week of September 29, 2014.

4. All construction work will require the temporary closure of several parking spaces at a time to allow the construction machinery to operate. Work will also require the temporary closure of sidewalks in the vicinity of the construction.

5. The base material under the sidewalks will be replaced, the concrete sidewalks replaced, and finally new trees will be planted in the tree wells.

6. A key aspect of this project is that as part of the replacement program, the Village will be utilizing Cornell-mix structural soil, which is large size nutrient-coated gravel with dirt and nutrients mixed in, as designed by Cornell University. This structural soil will be placed under the new sidewalk areas that will be replaced around the tree pits. This mix will allow the trees to grow and their roots to reach out under the sidewalks, while minimizing the likelihood that the roots will uplift the sidewalk panels. While some residents have proposed other sub-surface sidewalk support systems, the other systems proposed range as much as approximately double the cost of the Cornell structural soil.

7. Generally, the schedule for this construction work is laid out to take approximately six to eight weeks, after which new trees will be in the tree wells.

All work should be completed by the middle to the end of November, 2014, provided that the weather continues to cooperate.

We apologize for the inconvenience during this period of construction.

Very truly yours,

Richard Slingerland

Village Manager

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