Page 2 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, JUly 7, 2023 Сommunications problem A By Mark E. Vogler fter Town Hall closed for the weekend last Friday (June 30), representatives of Champlain Excavating delivered a threepage informational fl ier to all of the homes on Cliff Road announcing that their road AN INCONVENIENCE: Cliff Road residents expressed dismay that they didn’t learn about the planned shutdown of their road for a water main project until just fi ve days before the scheduled closing. Pictured from left to right: Front row: Jeanne Bambury and Shirley Raithel; back row: John C. Bambury and Philip J. Raithel. The four shared their concerns in front of the Bambury house. (Saugus Advocate photo by Mark E. Vogler) would be closed effective 7 a.m. Wednesday (July 5) so work crews could begin a water main replacement project. The timing of the announcement – heading into the July 4 holiday and just five days before the scheduled road shutdown – riled residents of Cliff Road, many of them who were learning about it for the fi rst time. “People who live on Cliff Road aren’t too happy about how this whole thing was explained to us,” John C. Bambury told The Saugus Advocate in an interview Wednesday (July 5). 5.0 %APY* INSURED 9 Month CD Your nest egg just got an upgrade. A GREAT RATE AND INSURANCE? NO WAY. YES WAY! Here’s your chance to reach your savings goal faster than ever. Everett Bank’s 9 Month CD with an amazing 5.0% APY* gets you closer to those financial goals much faster. Easily calculate better earnings with Everett Bank’s 9 Month CD. Go to everettbank.com to easily open your account on-line in just minutes. “We know this is important work that needs to be done. But we don’t like sneaky people who come by on Friday night, the last day of the month, and say ‘your road is going to be closed on the 5th of July.’ They give you just fi ve days’ notice to think about it. That’s not right,” he said. Bambury, 78, was born in Saugus, is a 1962 Saugus High School graduate and has lived most of his life in his hometown aside from his time in the U.S. Navy. He and his wife, Jeanne, his High School sweetheart, who also graduated from Saugus High in 1962, recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary and have lived on Cliff Road for about six decades. “We had no idea they were going to put in a new water main. It would have been nice to be informed about this a little bit earlier,” Jeanne said as she stood on her front porch with her husband and some next-door neighbors. “There’s a lot of elderly people who live on this street. And we all have health issues and need to get to medical appointments. So they need to tell us about this project so we can make plans,” she said. Board of Selectmen Chair *Annual Percentage Yield (APY) is accurate as of the date posted and is subject to change without notice. APY assumes that interest remains on deposit until maturity. A withdrawal will reduce earnings. A penalty may be imposed for early withdrawal. Offer may be withdrawn at any time. Minimum of $500 is required to open a Certificate of Deposit and earn the advertised APY. Member FDIC | Member DIF All Deposits Are Insured In Full. Anthony Cogliano said he’s not happy about the fi ve-day notice either, after he learned about the situation. “I was disgusted with the way the residents were informed,” Cogliano said in an interview on Wednesday. “That’s not the proper way to do business, but communication is certainly not a strong suit at Town Hall,” he said. Cogliano suggested that the proper way for the Town of Saugus to give notice about the project would have been to have the neighbors meet with the contractor weeks in advance to explain what was going on. “Don’t get me wrong – it’s a great thing replacing the water main,” Cogliano said. “But, it would’ve been nice to know about it before Friday afternoon of the long 4th of July break with no one at Town Hall to explain the situation,” he said. Highlights of the abutter notifi cation The fl ier distributed to Cliff Road residents last Friday advised residents that: • Champlain Excavating will replace the entire existing water main on Cliff Road as well as all abutting water services from the new water main to the shut off at abutters property line. Champlain Excavating will provide abutters with a temporary bypass line during the water main replacement project. • No vehicle would be allowed to access Cliff Road at the end of Appleton Street to the end of Anderson Way, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. • The project duration starts on July 5, with completion expected by Aug. 25. • In the event of a medical emergency or need for emergency assistance, residents are asked to call 911. Once Saugus Police contact Champlain Excavating, access will be provided as needed. • The parking spots along the ballfi eld along Appleton Street have been designated COMMUNICATIONS PROBLEM | SEE PAGE 9
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