Grounds crew repairs maintenance issues

Last year, The Equinox reported on the growing number of potholes around campus, student concerns and what Keene State College’s grounds crew was going to do about it.

Revisiting the issue, Joe Britton, facility manager for grounds services, said his team has already completed the repairs of several large potholes in the Winchester Lot and several larger infrastructure projects around campus.

“If you look around, we replaced some sidewalks next to the Spaulding gym and between Holloway and One Butler Court, we replaced a sidewalk and paved an area where the trash dumpsters are,” Britton said.

Britton added that, along with the demolition of Owl’s Nests 6 and 7, his crew installed a new walkway and improved the curb cuts so that “students can have the option to walk across the lawn.”

Although infrastructure is seeing an improvement, it has not come without its problems.

Britton said concrete shortages have delayed some paving projects around campus, noting that with numerous construction projects underway in Keene, his crew had to leave some areas unpaved until the necessary resources became available.

“I’d love to be able to do everything,” he added.

Students play an important role in addressing infrastructure issues.

“If there’s an issue a student notices, they can report it to campus safety or some sort of campus authority,” Britton said. “We’re not everywhere, but if there’s an issue, we’d like to know about it.”

He recalled that after a trip and fall along the sidewalk next to the Spaulding Gym last year, the incident was reported to campus safety so that Britton and his crew could address it quickly.

Despite the setbacks, many students said they’ve noticed the improvements around campus and appreciate the efforts ground services provide.

“I guess there are a couple of areas that I will occasionally trip over, but I really have not felt like there’s any big infrastructure problems,” said senior Finnian Nibert. “I don’t have much to say, so I think that’s a good sign they’re doing a good job.”

Junior Jillian Durant compared the condition of the commuter lot last year to this year.

“I would say the potholes in the commuter lot have especially been a lot better because of the fixes. Anything I noticed [last year] has definitely been fixed,” Durant said.

Britton acknowledged that the commuter lot was a major problem area that his crew addressed over the summer.

For now, Britton said his crew does not have any major projects scheduled but is focusing on reactive maintenance and preparing for the approaching winter, which can bring frost heaves and cracks. It’s an issue the team has tackled in the past, but this year they’re ready to respond quickly if new problems arise.