Feb. 1 2017 – There were 250 people in attendance Tuesday night at Hartford Town Hall for what was supposed to be an opportunity for the public to comment…. or, not so much. Washington County Administrator Joshua Schoemann said he “didn’t know.” 
Melissa Kratz, chairperson of the No Reliever Route group, said she had questions throughout the week regarding the format of the meeting.
“Its posted notice read, “Your Opportunity for Public Comment,”” said Kratz.
“That’s what everybody else thought would happen too and that’s why everybody showed up.”
Instead the format morphed into Washington County Highway Commissioner Scott Schmidt and Jeremy Hinds with K. Singh & Associates outlining the proposed alternate route and then splitting into groups around the room to field questions one on one with people in attendance.
During the explanation segment there is a video with Hinds detailing the construction in St. Lawrence and the impact on historic buildings including the church and The Little Red Inn.
Later in the meeting Hinds detailed the cost behind the project; with 30% of the proposal outlined the anticipated cost has risen from $20 million to just under $24 million.
Other aspects that have changed include:
-a SEWRPC study that indicated the lost farm acres would increased from 38.9 acres to 52.6 acres.
-the number of residences impacted have also increased from 43 to 53.
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