Dear Neighbor,
Four of the SRRA directors met this afternoon with Bob Sherwin, president of RoadPacker Southwest, to express our concern with the road condition, following the 0.15 inch rain that began in the early morning.
We were assured by Mr. Sherwin that he, too, is very concerned about the condition of the road, as is the corporate office of RoadPacker International, in
So what is causing the difficulty with our road? Mr. Sherwin believes there have been two problems: (1) in the initial treatment, the western part of the road (between Silver Saddle and the RR tracks) was too wet when it was compacted. Evidently, when this happens, the curing period is extended considerably. And (2) there were problems with the chemical properties of the hundreds of tons of clay which were brought in and added to the road material. Without getting overly technical, the clay was too alkaline, with a ph of 8.8, well outside the desirable range of 7-8. Also, it had a “Cation Exchange Capacity” that was far too low. (In the language most of us speak that means it wasn’t sticky enough.)
The ultimate fix for these problems won’t be known until after CEO McDermott and his technical staff analyze our situation. Mr. Sherwin, however, has assured us verbally and in writing that “we remain committed to making this the road that we all intended for you and your residents.” This has obviously been a costly learning experience for him, as well as a very trying experience for all of us. However, at this point the directors believe that the company genuinely wants to correct these problems, whatever it takes, and so we continue to call for patience from our community. (Incidentally, the roadwork you may have observed this afternoon is just a temporary measure to restore the road’s drivability).
Please feel free to email or phone me or any of the directors if you have additional questions.
Regards,
Jim