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RIVERDALE - Wal-mart and Target road by spring
(by Leslie Scott - Staff Writer - December 02, 2008)
RIVERDALE - Work on the final connection of the interior road to the Target department store started, stopped, and restarted again. Now the borough will focus on getting this project finished.
The interior road will provide non-commercial vehicles an access route to go from Wal-Mart to Target without using Route 23. So far, motorists can travel from Wal-Mart through the Grande at Riverdale, a residential community located between the two shopping centers, but no farther.
Target and D.R. Horton, the Texas-based developer of the Grande, are responsible for completing the final connection, which would open the entrance to Target.
During the Oct. 6, Borough Council meeting, Borough Engineer Paul Darmofalski said the last portion of this project was scheduled to begin on Oct. 20.
During the Nov. 17 meeting, the engineer reported to the council that this project started but stopped mainly because of both the developers’ discontent with the borough.
According to Darmofalski, Horton was upset because it wanted the borough to reduce its performance bonds, and Target is upset because a traffic light at its site has not been activated.
During the June 16 meeting, Horton asked the borough to reduce its performance bonds by $3.7 million. Although council members approved this motion, the engineer made a recommendation at the meeting not to refund the bonds until the interior road was under construction.
Once it was clarified to Horton that the borough voted to reduce its performance bonds, the company agreed to start the project again, the engineer explained.
“Our attorney, Bob Oostdyk, said we are committed to returning the Target bonds and reducing the Horton bonds,” said Darmofalski.
The borough has an agreement with Target that states that this road will be competed by the upcoming spring.
Oostdyk said the borough should use this language as it communicates with Target to get this project finalized.
“With Horton, we have additional money that we’re holding and we will hold it until the road is completed,” said Oostdyk.
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