Completion expected by September 2026

By Avice Meehan
The Connecticut Department of Transportation has good news for Norfolk residents and travelers who use Route 44: The massive project to replace three retaining walls below and to the east of Norfolk’s historic Center Cemetery has a September 2026 completion date.

CDOT Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto, who last worked in Norfolk as a lifeguard at Tobey Pond, met on May 29 with First Selectman Matt Riiska, engineers from CDOT’s regional office and project contractors for a briefing and update. “We knew what a significant impact it would have on the community and are pleased with the acceleration,” he said. “You want to see us gone—in a good way.”

Amy E. Hare, the project engineer, said work on Route 44 is expected to cost less than the original $37.5 million estimate and to be completed in fewer construction days—611 days over three seasons instead of 1,098 days for five seasons. The primary reason involves a shift in construction methods used to replace three aging retaining walls, which resulted in less excavation and the ability to work during the winter months.

As visible from Route 44, workers for K2 Construction are gradually building a temporary structure starting from the top down, gradually removing soil that was used to create a construction ramp. First, they are installing soil nails with a massive drill that stabilize the slope to create a temporary retaining wall. As they proceed, they are also drilling larger tieback rods int the soil and these will eventually be connected to the final retaining wall. Each layer is sprayed with a form of concrete known as shotcrete.
Once the K2 team has completed construction of the temporary wall and reach the level of the road bed itself, they will begin building the actual foundation for the first retaining wall. That involves installation of H-piles—essentially the steel structures to support the wall—and preparing the connect the tiebacks. The wall will be poured in place and after that, the slope will be replanted.

Riiska and Troy LaMere, who leads the town’s road crew, praised members of the CDOT team for their responsiveness. When Eucalitto asked about the biggest surprise on the project the answer was unanimous: the behavior of drivers and their unwillingness to wait for the traffic signal, despite efforts to finetune the timing and frequent state police presence.

“Most people do not respect the traffic rules,” said Hare. She noted that detours onto Old Colony Road are an ongoing issue and that the department had tried (and failed) to have it removed from routes suggested by traffic applications such as Google Maps. The town briefly closed Old Colony Road to traffic, but Riiska said the state police asked (forcefully) that it be reopened. Relief may be on the way, however. Riiska and Lamere said the town hopes to make Old Colony Road, once the main road to North Canaan, a dead-end street with a turnaround.

Accommodations have been made for the immediate neighbors along Route 44, which include a temporary driveway for one home and driveway access devices for others that enbable residents to know the traffic flow. Vibration and other monitors have also been installed.