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View Full Version : Why you may not want to see Bonestroo trucks in your neighborhood..



66gtk
01-20-2011, 10:31 AM
Hey, isn't that Dan's company where we have our parties? Well....they have been poking around my neighborhood and trampling through the snow in my yard past couple months. Why are all those tracks in my yard, and what the heck is going on? Now, I got a letter from the city that they will be tearing up my neighborhood streets this spring and will be ripped up most of the entire summer. Ripped up driveway aprons, new curbs/gutters, ripped out mailboxes, etc. Oh, how fun. I can't wait.

I guess I won't be seeing too many road miles this year in a nice car as I won't be able to get it out/in without driving through a battle field of mud, dust, etc. Sure would be a good season to get some car projects done, but I don't have any money to do any more. I guess I'll be saving a lot of money on gas, so it aint all bad (:

robl110
01-20-2011, 12:10 PM
Is there a pipeline that runs through your property?

DNeinstadt
01-20-2011, 12:12 PM
Wow, so they've gotten to your name on my hit list. Whew, they are moving along pretty quick. :)

66gtk
01-20-2011, 12:54 PM
Dan,
Tell 'em to keep it smooth in and out of my driveway and I'll keep you in my good graces.

DNeinstadt
01-20-2011, 12:59 PM
:think:

p51mstg
01-21-2011, 10:00 AM
Bummer!

Living in an area that most people from metro areas would have difficulty defining as a "town" (in other words, I've gotten closer to this than people from bigger cities would normally get), and having been involved in a few of these kinds of projects, here's what I think is happening:

So, the city decided to rip up that street for whatever reason. They contracted with an engineer to figure out what needs to get ripped up, what needs to get repaired, and who needs to get pissed off. Bonestroo (the engineer) was probably doing the survey work to figure all of that out, right, Dan?

A "street" isn't just the pavement. Under the pavement is a whole bunch of stuff - there's the road bed, which includes gravel, dirt, dead bodies, whatever; water lines, sanitary and storm sewers, electrical and natural gas services, and maybe telephone, internet and cable, toxic waste from an old ammunition factory..... it's ALL under that pavement, or near it. And, therein lies the problem - some of that stuff is actually along side the road. If they dig up the road, they're going to cut your water and sewer services at some point, which means they need to have access to the "city" part of that service, including what's under the boulevard. Curb and gutter are also part of that and need to be replaced.

My guess is, they were in your yard for their survey work, which includes several feet/yards/acres of your grass. The road bed may actually extend into your yard. So, you're right - it's going to be a mess for several months, and you may need to make plans to find alternate ways of getting home a few of those days.

The good news is, they're going to put everything back the way they found it. It's amazing how nice it can look after they make a mess. But, I'd be sure to keep an eye on them and make sure they come back and finish the job. The city can put leverage on the engineer, who can put leverage on the contractors to make sure when they're done your yard looks as imaculate as it does now. But, they need to know about that - don't assume it will just magically happen.

The city is paying for all of this and makes several installments. The final installment is made after everything is done. In other words, if the contractors don't finish the job, they don't get paid. There's usually a lot of money involved, which means they have a pretty big incentive to do whatever the engineer tells them to do. The system works pretty well, but if the city thinks the job is done, then they'll send off the last installment and that's the end of it.

Sorry if you guys knew that already....

robl110
01-21-2011, 10:31 AM
Yup, I am in the same situation this summer. The road in front of my house will be torn up from June till at least September. Thinking I will probably just sell my current Mustang and use the money towards getting out of our town house. Then I will buy the one I really want in a year or two.

FLSTCI71
01-21-2011, 03:06 PM
Thinking I will probably just sell my current Mustang and use the money towards getting out of our town house.

Hey, hey, don't even joke about that. Your car is not for sale!

robl110
01-21-2011, 05:01 PM
Hey, hey, don't even joke about that. Your car is not for sale!

If its the extra cash I need to get out of the TH, I will sell. If it won't help I will keep it around. Of course its easy to think about during the winter. I may be singing a different tune come spring :hehe: