Clarksville approves contractor for Plum Lake sidewalk

Aprile Rickert, The Evening News and the Tribune, Jeffersonville, Ind.
·2 min read

Aug. 4—CLARKSVILLE — The Clarksville Town Council has approved moving forward with a contractor to build sidewalks that will allow residents in the Plum Run and Plum Lake neighborhoods access to the lake.

At its regular meeting Tuesday, the council approved the sole project bid, which was submitted by Dan Cristiani Excavating for $80,699. Five contractors had expressed interest in the project, however only one applied, according to notes provided ahead of the council meeting. A second contractor indicated they were unable to finish the bid, but that their preliminary estimate was in line with what was chosen.

The project will include construction of roughy 600 linear feet of sidewalk, four feet wide, starting at Plum Woods Drive and continuing along Plum Lake Drive to the pedestrian trail around the lake. The work will include the new sidewalk construction, installation of drainage pipes due to a natural groundwater spring, reconstruction of five driveways and relocation of irrigation systems.

Clarksville Town Manager Kevin Baity said the project first came before the council about a year ago when residents from the area requested sidewalk access to the park. When it was built, the council at that time had approved the developer leaving sidewalks off of the plan in the Plum Lake neighborhood due to the large lot sizes.

"Then as the adjoining subdivisions filled out, the number of people attempting to use the lake for their common area, recreation [increased,]" Baity said. When the residents approached the council for a solution, he said, "We determined that the easiest way to do that would be to run the sidewalk along four to five homes along Plum Lake Drive."

The council also approved Tuesday a six-month extension to Form G Companies, LLC to complete Gateway Crossing, a development plan that includes town homes, apartments and retail at Eastern and Little League boulevards.

The Clarksville Redevelopment Commission sold the roughly five acres there for Form G in 2019 for $1.25 million. The development plan originally included a completion deadline of Dec. 31, but has been moved to June 15, 2022 "due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other construction-related issues including pricing/availability," according to council notes. Baity said the development is around 75% finished.