During Tuesday’s demolition and repair of the ramps to OB’s mid-block crosswalks, some memory tiles were removed and damaged. These are the special tiles installed along the curb on Newport Avenue for several blocks that people purchased over the years.
This reporter while visiting the project asked the foreman of the work crew working on the ramp widening if he planned to save the tiles that his guys removed. He said no, and I advised him to keep them. So he said he did.
When I asked folks over at the OB Mainstreet Association, one of the groups that sponsored the tiles, about this, they assured me that they were aware of the tiles plight. One large square of tiles in front of the former Strand would be left alone, they said, and this was confirmed by that foreman.
Denny Knox, CEO of the OBMA, told me that she had inquired with the city whether there were funds in the city’s budget on the repaving of Newport Project to pay for replacing those tiles lost. They haven’t got back with her on that yet.
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In front of the Strand. Gotta check to see if mine is still there!
In all my years of construction, contractors have always been responsible for protecting existing property, which is exactly what those tiles are. If the tiles had to be moved to accommodate the new work, then the city should have made allowances for them to be moved to other spots along the street and there are other places to put them. If they were removed to accommodate the work and could have been placed back where they were, then the contractor should be responsible for doing that.