YES… we are getting many calls and emails about lawn and curb repairs.
We WANT it fixed too!!!!
But before you send the photos of your lawn likely looking like a crime scene…please read below.
Right‑of‑Way (ROW) Reality
The ROW (area between the edge of the road and your property) is Town controlled space that we need to keep the roadway itself functioning. Typically, this is between 10 and 15 feet from the roadway (pavement) edge.
But isn’t it my lawn?
Yes…but, also – no.
The Town needs this area for roadway purposes like utility transmission, sidewalks, drainage, vegetation management, etc. and this is also where we need to put snow! And we do appreciate homeowners helping us out with some routine maintenance of lawn in this strip, feel free to keep it basic, grass (or even some weeds) is simple and resilient.
This is an area of shared responsibility, but Public Works does not:
- mow your lawn
- prune your lilacs
- topiary your shrubs into garden‑show masterpieces
So yes… lawn damage in the ROW may occur, but DPW is not always responsible for it.
However, everyone agrees this was a really rough winter, so if there is significant lawn damage (not just a tire rut or small scrape), please let us know and we will assess it!
Think of it as nature’s reminder that the ROW is a work zone, not an area where you want to plant a garden, or a fence!
By Town ordinance, any work from a resident in the ROW requires a Town permit.
Curb Damage
We’ll pick up the broken pieces as soon as we can – promise!
But – we only replace curbs when it impacts:
✔ drainage
✔ safety
✖ NOT because “it was there before”. We only install curbing for a specific function, which is to prevent erosion where applicable (very steep slopes), not for aesthetics.
Also:
No, there is not a curb-repair SWAT team hiding behind the Public Safety Building.
(If there were, they’d still get stuck in the 95 Construction Traffic).
It is more economical to repair large amounts of curb around town all at once so it will take time to get to necessary repairs.
Mailboxes
If the plow HIT IT → we’ll review it.
If the snow sent it into LI Sound→ that’s just gravity doing its thing.
Mailboxes or any other damage along 156 and 161 deserve Purple Hearts. That’s all CTDOT….not us……
Warm Weather Is a Trap
East Lyme residents see one hour of sun and immediately ask:
“Boardwalk?”
“Hole‑in‑the‑Wall?”
AHHHHHH!!!! Do I dare say….🍦…. Dairy Queen?????
Don’t fall for it. While we all hope for warmer weather, we are still in winter response mode until at least late March/early April!
Think Spring Instead
While staring at your lawn wondering what you did to deserve this, imagine:
⚾ Spring baseball
🚲 Kids finally riding bikes again – not ruining your living room
🌞 Boardwalk sunsets
🍦 Ice cream lines around the block
🎣 Fishing at McCook’s like the fish owe you money
Better days are coming. And to that…we say, you’ll soon be regretting that the grass is growing and you get to keep cutting it week after week……
YES….THE SWEEPER IS COMING
We are prepping our sweepers.
Tuning them up… fueling them… giving them a pep talk…
Remember: We have 118 miles of road and only so many humans, trucks, and sanity points.
If we had 10 sweepers, 10 crews, and a parallel universe, we’d send all of them, but – we don’t.
Cleanup WILL happen.
Just not instantly.
And Soon…We Hand Everything Off to Parks & Rec
Summer is coming, which means we get to pass ALL the complaints to Parks & Rec! 🙌
Coming soon to THEIR inbox:
🏖️ “The sand is too hot.”
🌊 “Fix the tide and seaweed.”
🐚 “Someone stole my seashells.”
⛱ “My beach sticker should work everywhere including Costco.”
Public Works can go back to fixing catch basins, potholes and roadside mowing!
❤️ Thanks, East Lyme
Trust us, we want the town looking great.
The boss is very particular about it. (This is our home too!)
But we’ve only got so much staff, time, and equipment to cover 118 miles (and 17 sidewalk miles) of beautiful chaos.
We’ll get there….one street at a time