WINDHAM — A 1,100-foot turning lane being built on Route 28 is the first of two road changes that will accommodate increased traffic tied to the growing Spruce Pond Estates residential development.
Construction for the middle turning lane, south of the entrance to Spruce Pond, started two weeks ago and is slated for completion by the end of October, said Steve Dionne, project supervisor for Continental Paving of Londonderry.
In the meantime, traffic will be limited to one lane in the area — near the Windham Animal Hospital — during work hours, between 7 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Yesterday, loaders, bulldozers, excavators and dump trucks were at the site, which includes lots of ledge.
Dionne estimated a couple hundred feet of ledge, about 14 feet wide and 6 feet high, will need to be removed to make room for the road project. Some ledge already has been removed.
The $500,000 turning project is being paid for by H&B Homes of Chester, which is building the homes at Spruce Pond, said the development's co-owner, Brian Harvey.
The turning lane is required by the state because of increased traffic volume generated by the residential neighborhood.
Forty-eight large homes were constructed in the first phase of the development, going back five years, said co-owner John Bacheller. About 20 homes have been built in the second phase, so far, he said.
The developers scaled back the size and prices of the homes by about a third to compete in the slow housing market. Originally, the prices started at about $600,000, Harvey said. Now, at about 1,000 square feet smaller, the home prices are starting around $380,000, he said.
The strategy worked, Bacheller said.
Last year, the developers sold only five homes, he said, but this year the number spiked to 18. If the trend continues, the developers plan to build about 18 new homes per year.
"We feel fortunate," Harvey said. "The down side of it is we have lowered our prices to the point where we are not making a lot of money. But we are keeping busy. That's better than the alternative."
Also, to support the increase in traffic associated with the new homes, the developer is contributing $20,000 to the installation of a new traffic light north of Spruce Pond Estates at Route 28 and Depot Road. The intersection improvements will cost about $1 million, he said.
An existing flashing red light hangs on the Depot Road side of the intersection and a flashing yellow light on the Route 28 side.
New Hampshire Department of Transportation engineers are designing the intersection now and construction will likely start within a year, Harvey said.
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