Resurfacing project in Valley Stream wraps up

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After spending more than a year advocating for major resurfacing in the Valley Stream area, Nassau County legislator Carrié Solages, a Democrat from Lawrence, said he finally saw success in the village-wide project this past week. Carried out by the contractor Posillico, Inc.,the resurfacing project began on Friday, June 4 and was completed on Tuesday, June 15. 

The resurfacing project addressed road conditions on Mill Road, as well as the mile-long stretch on North Central Avenue between Hendrickson Avenue and the Southern State Parkway. Work in the area included minor curbing, additional ADA-compliant concrete ramps, top decks for draining and repaving. Solages remarked that the work follows months of complaints by Valley Stream residents regarding concerns about safety and the quality of these roads. 

“By resurfacing this heavily traveled stretch of North Central Avenue, Nassau County is demonstrating its commitment to meeting the needs of Valley Stream residents and making our roads safer and more accessible for pedestrians and motorists alike,” said Solages in a public statement. Solages also noted the significance of this project for the community as a whole.   

“These roads are heavily used. Valley Stream is one of the most up and coming places for families to live, particularly Black families,” Solages said.   

Solages’ legislative efforts were supported by Nassau County Executive Laura Curran and the leaders of Nassau County Department of Public Works. The recent completion of the resurfacing in Valley Stream is also part of the county’s capital plan for five major roadway resurfacing contracts which continued despite fiscal restraints caused by the coronavirus pandemic.   

With coronavirus restrictions easing in Nassau County, traffic has upticked in recent weeks. Chuck Forte, vice president and paving division manager of Posillico, commented on the significance of the repaving in Valley Stream as part of the Nassau County paving project.   

“There is a lot of paving going on right now in Nassau County so it all benefits the traveling public,” said Forte in an emailed statement. “The traffic has really increased post pandemic because I think more people are currently driving rather than taking the trains. So dealing with increased traffic is always an issue.”   

Forte added that Posillico worked six days a week and 9-10 hour days to be able to complete the project in under two weeks. 

The proximity of the Robert W. Carbonaro Elementary School to Mill Road and the location of the Masjid Hamza Mosque in North Valley Stream, however, presented some challenges for Solages. Given the elementary school is adjacent to the busy Mill Road, this prompted discussions of installing a red light camera due to the number of speeding incidents in this area.

Additionally, while the quick timeline of the resurfacing project has caused minimal disruption to the majority of residents, Solages acknowledged the potential impact of noise pollution to Friday services at Masjid Hamza. 

“I don’t want the construction to hinder congregants of that Mosque so I am going to reach out to the contractor to observe the congregation,” Solages said. “A lot of people go to that Mosque, so my obligation is to uphold that community.”