Cranberry Street, a common path for students walking to school, finally gets a sidewalk — along with new drainage and pavement

The Riverhead Highway Department has paved Cranberry Street and installed a sidewalk on the north side of the street, a common path for students walking to Riverhead schools.

Highway Superintendent Mike Zaleski, who took office in January, said Cranberry Street was a priority when he assessed which roads needed work done. The street, just an eighth of a mile long, connects Roanoke Avenue and North Griffing Avenue adjacent to Riverhead Middle School.

“I’ve seen kids’ elbows touching school buses walking down the street, it was so narrow,” Zaleski said.

Previously, the road was 25 feet wide and had no sidewalk, causing kids to have to walk on or close to the road, which is also used by school buses. The new sidewalk is also wheelchair accessible.

“I just made sure this all got done before school started. And I’m really proud of it,” he said.

Zaleski gave special thanks to Assistant Town Engineer Ken Testa, who he said worked side by side with him on the project, as well as Councilman Ken Rothwell, Town Board liaison to the highway department. Community Development Director Dawn Thomas will look to obtain the New York State “Safe Routes to School” grant to recoup the $230,00 cost of the project, Zaleski said.

“This was a project that got shelved numerous times. No one ever wanted to take on the severity of it,” Zaleski said. “So there was a lot of paperwork done trying to have this done in years past but again, it always fell by the wayside. This is the year we made it happen and it came out fantastic.”

New drainage infrastructure was also installed on Cranberry Street, as the road was susceptible to minor flooding and had an “antiquated” drainage system, Zaleski said.

Rothwell commended Zaleski for his work on the project. “Mike, you have not just provided a safe passageway for the kids and provided safe routes, but I think you really have alleviated and protected our children from harm’s way for many years to come. That’s the most important thing, he said.

“And so in all the things that we do in town government, when you do something for the kids like this, giving them a safe route, I can’t commend you enough. And your entire staff at the highway department, you guys have been great,” Rothwell said.

Zaleski said he prioritizes at the beginning of each year what roads need to be paved. He said Pulaski Street from Roanoke Avenue to Osborn Avenue was also paved. Highway department staff will also be in the area painting the crosswalks in time for the first day of school Sept. 6, he said.

Rosemar Construction did the paving and Laser Industries did the drainage on Cranberry Street, Zaleski said.