Page 10 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • July 25, 2012 Area Two major construction projects set to begin by John Koster Two major construction projects are set to begin in Allendale next month, and members of the Allendale Borough Council urge motorists to plan alternate routes. Bergen County’s installation of a traffic light at Myrtle and West Crescent Ramsey avenues is set to begin Aug. 1. Plans call for the area to be closed for two to three months. This project will take place during some of the same time as another county project: the replacement of the bridge on Brookside Avenue near Donnybrook Road. Both roads approach the K-8 schools in Allendale and Northern Highlands Regional High School. The project at Brookside Avenue is expected to result in road closing that could last nine to 12 months. Borough officials noted that the 70year-old bridge at Donnybrook had been considered for five years, but no funding had been available until now. The borough ran the risk of losing the funding for the project if the work did not begin this year. As a result, replacement effort is due to begin next month. Councilwoman Jacqueline McSwiggan recently reported that the plans for both projects seemed to be on schedule for two ground-breakings, one around Aug. 1 and the other before the end of the month. “Myrtle and West Crescent Avenue will be closed,” Mayor Vince Barra advised at a recent council meeting. “We are shooting for -- and hoping for -- an August construction.” Councilwoman Elizabeth White noted that the county requires the long-awaited light to be completed in 90 days. She said she hopes it will be mostly completed in 30 days -- in time for the re-opening of school. White added that it was not possible to postpone construction because Bergen County, which is paying all the costs, is calling the shots. “We can’t stop. We can’t say it will be inconvenient,” White said. “We just have to go.” The area involved -- Myrtle Avenue and West Crescent Avenue near the center of the borough -- will be closed during construction so the work can be completed as quickly and efficiently as possible. Members of the council, while concerned about the traffic associated with both of these projects, found a certain satisfaction in finally getting Bergen County to fund and complete these two projects. No details were available at press time about the exact costs, but Bergen County, not Allendale, will be picking up the tab. Blanket solution Ramsey Daisy Troop 4435 helped Nikki Sebes, left, of Troop 544 make blankets for Tomorrow’s Children’s Hospital in Hackensack as part of Sebes’ Gold Award project. Sebes talked to the girls about the children at the hospital and then showed them how to make the blankets, which she will be delivering this summer.