Friday, December 25, 2020
www.towntimes.com
Volume 26, Number 39
Bridge project slated for 2023
New year, new job for Parker By Nadya Korytnikova Town Times
By Nadya Korytnikova Town Times
A $2.15 million bridge replacement project in Durham is expected to begin in the spring of 2023. The state Department of Transportation will replace a deteriorating 84-year-oldbridge that carries Route 69 (Wallingford Road) over Saw Mill Brook. The DOT held a public information meeting on the project recently. During a biannual inspection of the bridge in Sept. 2018, DOT officials said they noticed some cracks along the abutments and wing walls, which support the bridge. The new bridge will have the existing roadway horizontal alignment but the profile will be slightly raised to improve stopping sight distance. The bridge roadway will be widened to 34 feet to accommodate a 12-foottravel lane and a 5-foot shoulder in each direction. The bridge does not carry an official name and is referred to by DOT officials as Bridge No. 02442. The new bridge is expected to be completed in 2023 before the Durham Fair in September. The estimated cost of the project is $2.15 million, which will be paid for with 80 percent federal funds and 20 percent state funds. No town funding is required. See Bridge, A11
In June of 2020, Bob Mueller, right, and Allan Poole opened Trees to Tables workshop where they turn locally-cut trees into furniture pieces. Photo courtesy of Bob Mueller
Woodworking duo give toppled trees a ‘second life’ By Nadya Korytnikova Town Times
Don't be sad next time you see an old tree coming down. Thanks to two local woodworkers, it might not be thrown into a landfill or ground into wood chips. Allan Poole and Bob Mueller are committed to giving the tree a second life at their Trees to Tables workshop on 11 Old Indian Trail in Middlefield. They utilize trees that have been cut down by the towns of Durham, Middlefield, Middletown, or Haddam, and turn them into furniture pieces.
Allan Poole spent three years designing and building his computer numerical control machine, which he uses to cut and polish wood slabs.
also make custom pieces upon request. They work “We just repurpose stuff with slabs of ancient oaks, maples, ashes, beeches, that would’ve been otherwise ground into saw- and other native species. dust. Most of these trees One of their river tables was crafted out of a 120are too big to even be year-old copper beech cut into firewood,” said that once grew next to the Mueller. United Churches of Durham but had to be Poole and Mueller specialize in live-edge tables taken down after it beand river tables, but will came diseased.
Nadya Korytnikova, Town Times
“The tables here are made from 106- to 269-year-old trees,” said Mueller. “It’s not just wood. People knew these trees, they were part of someone’s childhood.” The trunk of each ancient tree can generate from 10 to 15 tables. To accommodate the trunk’s broad diSee Woodworking, A12
The next session of the Connecticut state legislature is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, Jan. 6, and John-Michael Parker is ready to get to work for the residents of Madison and Durham. “We need the government to be a source of good in our lives,” said Parker, a Democrat, who will Parker represent the 101st District. “We need it to make sure we are happy, safe, well-supported, and have opportunities to succeed.” Parker, who defeated Republican incumbent Noreen Kokoruda in November, advocates for accessible health-care, mental health resources, gun violence prevention, pay equity, full reproductive rights for women, environmental protections, paid family leave, senior services, veterans programs and an education system that prepares students to “excel in today’s economy.” “I really want people to feel like I am here to listen to them, serve, and represent them,” said Parker. “I really want to encourage folks in Durham and Madison to reach out to me at any time. My doors are always open.” See Parker, A5