Trenton starts repaving of Gladstone Avenue to the delight of residents
Residents on a threeblock stretch of Gladstone Ave. had less than 24 hours to move their cars — and voiced no angst.
And when heavy machinery on Tuesday rumbled onto Gladstone Ave. before sunrise — people smiled. When a concrete saw kicked up dust and roared loud enough to wake infants — residents cheered.
Following years of complaints, letters, and cursed words, Gladstone Ave., a treacherous potholed street that damages front-end suspensions, receives an upgrade of new sidewalks and paved streets.
“The project will first replace sidewalks and then the streets will be paved. We tried to get this done last year but weather presented challenges. I have to check with the contractor but expect this to be completed within several weeks,” Trenton Public Works Director Wahab “Wali” Onitiri explained.
The impacted portion of Gladstone Ave. off South Olden Ave. includes cross streets Garfield, Cleveland and South Logan avenues.
Laura Mora, a popular community activist whose family moved onto Gladstone Ave. more than 30 years ago, complained profusely about Gladstone Ave. for more than a decade. In September 2022, Mora and daughter, Graciela, penned a letter to city officials after residents were asked about concerns regarding street conditions. The preelection request sounded sincere. Mom and daughter wrote.
“We are owners of a house within the 500 block, and in the 30 years of living here we have only once, about 14 years ago, seen our particular street repaved……It’s understandable that you all have been more than busy, especially during COVID-19, and now trying to reintegrate our workforce back to normal. However, it is unacceptable that a street like Gladstone Ave., where there is a middle school present, has absolutely no real pavement or traffic signs or crossings painted…… We’ve noticed the city/state/county trying to “patch up” the streets, but the these patch up jobs are also what makes our streets undriveable.”
Mora and family members laughed derisively when city street workers arrived with more patch materials. Mora voiced apprehensive joy after hearing plans about her street.
“Let’s just wait and see what happens. It will be wonderful if this actually happens,” she said. Mora hoped that the street upgrade includes speed bumps for each of the three blocks being paved.
Onitiri noted numerous street and sidewalk upgrades are underway throughout the city.