If you’re interested in following the ongoing initiatives to correct the road and traffic conditions at the intersection of Potter and Pleasant Plains, please see below for the latest update. This effort is being organized by Stallings Resident David Allison.
This is his update from October 5, 2023:
“Bad News Good News
The North Carolina Department Of Transportation has strict guidelines for the project bidding process and only advertises bids during specific timeframes. If a timeframe deadline date is missed the project bid is advanced to the next bidding period. The October deadline has passed and bids will be let in March. I have a good idea which government entity has not complied with the required paperwork but I am not privy to all of all that information so anything I say is conjecture. I can confidently state that NCDOT has stepped up and taken great interest in our safety concerns.
The good news is the NCDOT is not waiting around until March to start work on our intersection. I reached out to NCDOT Spokesperson Jen Thompson and she replied “ We do have to move the letting to March 2024, but that will not affect the construction phase of the project. There are some activities the contractor can do over the course of the Winter (moving utilities, land clearing) The construction timeline is not affected”. I have talked with an engineer on the project and he said we will see a lot of workers in the area. The NCDOT team has been forthcoming and they have given me three contact people I can ask any questions to about the progress.
It is very easy to express cynicism towards our local government and we have every right to be skeptical since Stallings has left this project idle for nine years. That’s nine years of dangerous driving, congestion, and delay of retail development that would add tax money to the Town coffers. I have received the cost of the intersection design that Stallings paid in 2015. It’s mindboggling and I will save that for another time. A time when the Town Council boasts about being good “stewards” of our money.
I will finish by saying, let’s give NCDOT a chance to perform the work. We will keep an eye on them. As always we must be vigilant. This is not the time to stop. Thank you for your support and Stay Tuned.
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-David Allison”