Officials plan improvements for Pent Road

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BEACON FALLS — The town is looking at improving a winding, narrow section of Pent Road.

The Board of Selectmen met May 3 to discuss the potential project and how the town would move forward with it.

The portion of the road under consideration is near 74 Pent Road and leads to and from the Pent Road Recreation Complex.

Public Works Road Foreman Robert Pruzinsky said that section of the road is a dangerous blind corner.

“You can’t pass two cars on there,” said Charlie Edwards, who owns the property at 74 Pent Road.

In order to make the road improvements, Edwards is deeding a portion of his property to the town so it can widen the road and straighten the corner. Edwards is also planning to move a septic system near the road, which has blocked the project in the past from happening, away from the road.

The section of road that will be worked on is approximately 400 feet long and varies in width up to 8 feet, Town Engineer Jim Galligan said.

A telephone pole located on Edwards’ property would have to be moved to the other side of the road. About eight trees would need to be cut down near the proposed new site for the pole, First Selectman Christopher Bielik said.

Bielik said the town estimates the tree work to cost $7,500. Once the tree work has been completed, Eversource Energy will move the pole at no cost to the town, he said.

The board authorized Pruzinsky to contact Schreiber Tree Service to get a quote on the tree removal and authorized Galligan to price out the engineering portion of the project.

Bielik said the cost for the work will come out of the $500,000 the town approved last year for road repairs. He said, so far, the town has only used about $20,000 from the fund.

Galligan pointed out that large trucks would be traveling up and down Pent Road if the proposed Beacon Falls Energy Park project is built. He recommended using a temporary surface that would typically last three to five years on the new portion of road, then addressing the road in the future.