THATCHER — The closure of a road has area residents, a housing developer and the Thatcher Town Council frustrated.
The issue is the nearly year-long closure of Quail Ridge Drive. The road was closed in May 2021 when work was starting on the next phase of the Quail Ridge subdivision. However, developer Crandall Aaron explained a number of delays out of his control occurred, starting with the subcontractor on the dirt work.
“The big starter tractor broke twice, the blades he was using to cut the ground broke twice, he had COVID twice during all this time. So every one of those items created a delay,” Aaron said.
He added that he’s now facing an inability to obtain enough concrete to complete the curbs and gutters, and even if he could, subcontractors are telling him they don’t have enough staff to take on the job.
Plus the Pennsylvania company that produces the water relief valves the development is required to have in place in order to get water service from the City of Safford can’t give a date when the valves will be available for purchase, and there is a looming shortage of asphalt, which will result in another delay in finishing the road.
“There has been delay after delay after delay, out of my control,” Aaron said. “I wanted this to be done four months ago so I can build houses.”
Town Manager Heath Brown explained that the town cannot mandate the re-opening of the road, because it’s private property until it’s transferred to the town, and the town will not accept ownership of a road unless it is complete and meets town code.
Council member Jenny Howard suggested that much of the residents’ frustration could be mitigated with increased communication from the developer and the town, taking into consideration the issues out of the developer’s control.
“I don’t think anybody’s expecting a promise, but a plan. I think that would help a lot,” Howard said. “Mr. Crandall, I think, would want to be a good neighbor, and just a small communication would even help a whole bunch.”
