BUCHANAN, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Some Buchanan residents will be without a driveway or paved road for longer than expected.
“It’s very difficult some days to get in and get out,” said homeowner Dan Schuh said.
Construction on the roads and sidewalks has been delayed, and the Town of Buchanan doesn’t currently have an estimate for when it will end. The town posted a social media update on Tuesday saying, “The town and contractors are working diligently to come up with a solution.”
But the road conditions have made it difficult for residents like Schuh and his wife Evie. They say it’s frustrating to have no immediate end in sight.
“I can get out any time of the day or night through the back gate, and without that back gate, I don’t know what we’d have done.”
The issues with cement shortages have been seen statewide, according to the president of the Wisconsin Concrete Pavement Association.
“It’s been across the board with all of the cement suppliers.” President Kevin McMullen said. “They just can’t get enough here fast enough.”
McMullen said there are four main reasons, including current demand.
“From 2021 to 2022, we were up 11%,” McMullen said. “We’ve never seen that kind of increase.”
Other reasons include switching types of cement, the logistics of transporting the cement and the weather at the start of the season. These factors combined to create what McMullen says is one of the worst shortages he’s seen in nearly 30 years in the industry.
“October can always be a peak time of the year and peak demands for cement,” he said. “But really the one in my career — I’ve only seen one probably worse situation — and that was 2014.”
With winter approaching, the Schuhs hope to have their street back but still understand it may not be soon.
“Being elderly, we kind of accept it as progress,” Dan said. “It bothers us, yes, but I think it bothers the companies more.”
In the social media post, the town says driveways will be completed as soon as more cement is available.
Comments