Road resurfacing project begins

By CHARITY SMITH

csmith@yourdailyglobe.com

Wakefield - Drivers on U.S. 2 and M-28 in Wakefield will find delays as flaggers work to juggle opposing traffic onto one available lane on each road.

"We're trying real hard to keep everybody safe," said Mike Fercello, a laborer and flagger with Veteran-Co of Minneapolis. "So we have to make people wait. That's just the way it is."

He said that an intersection such as that of U.S. 2 and M-28 is especially difficult to manage as one person has to stand off to the side and direct traffic coming from four directions. Flaggers are also stationed on U.S. 2 just west of the M-28 intersection and at the intersection of Putnam Street and U.S. 2, just west of the school.

Officials with Northwoods Paving, the project contractor, started a milling and resurfacing portion of the Michigan Department of Transportation project on Monday and said they anticipate this portion of the work to be completed by July 23, which is earlier than expected, according to Dan Weingarten, an MDOT spokesman. Workers are milling the existing road and putting 1.5 inches of resurfacing on top of the road, according to project officials.

The project goes along U.S. 2 from the Little Black River Bridge on the west end of town to Pierce Street, and from the U.S. 2 M-28 intersection north and east to Crusher Road past Sunday Lake. In total the project will cover 1.2 miles on U.S. 2 and 1.1 miles on M28.

The total project includes asphalt milling and resurfacing, drainage structure repairs and pavement markings, according to Weingarten. "After the paving is done, the remaining work will include adding gravel to the shoulders, painting the pavement markings and re-establishing turf," he said.

The entire project will cost $560,000 and is slated to be completed in September, but MDOT now expects it to be completed ahead of schedule.