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Frank A. Douglass Insurance Agency

Massie Road Reopens

One of the longest-lingering road repair projects following the 2018 Father’s Day Flood is nearing completion.

Barricades were removed from Massie Road at US-41 north of Chassell Friday, with the section heading west basically completed. Construction continues on the short section of Massie Road east of the highway.

Torrential rains June 17, 2018 undermined and washed out the pavement on the hill, and damaged the overwhelmed drainage system next to the road.

After more than five years, the road has finally been repaved. Enlarged drainage ditches and culverts were installed, in hopes of reducing or eliminating damage from a future storm.

In an appearance on Copper Country Today this spring, Houghton County Road Commission engineer Kevin Harju said the $4.2 million project was underwritten by the Federal Emergency Management Administration. Reimbursement money has sometimes been slow in coming, with the commission sometimes having to wait as much as a year after a project is completed to get the cash…

Our operating budget gets really strained at this time, because, especially if we have to hire a contractor to do some of the work, of course, they expect to be paid when they’re completed.

Here are some photos of the repaired area:

Looking westerly, up the hill from US-41.
Fresh pavement, deeper drainage ditches, and larger culverts.
Finish work remaining east of US-41.

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