Berlin, Adkins Co. at crossroads

The tension between the Adkins Company building supply store and the Town of Berlin isn’t going anywhere just yet.

The evidence is a large roadblock on Harrison Avenue put up last June by Adkins, which owns part of the road, and the fact that both sides remain far apart on a dollar amount that would resolve the dispute. Adkins officials want $400,000 for its section of the road and town officials have offered $60,000, both figures apparently based on separate appraisals.

Adkins General Manager Rick Holland brought the issue to a town work session Monday night, asking if the town’s plan to close Baker Street was a jab at Adkins.

When residents of Baker Street complained of its poor condition there and asked that it be addressed with sensitivity to its historic ­­­– the only one remaining paved with oyster shells – the town responded by escalating plans to do that and to limit through traffic to minimize further damage on the roadway.

The town is expected to introduce an ordinance that would redefine the term “truck” in town code to be any vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating exceeding 10,000 pounds, or five tons, during a Town Council meeting on Monday, May 8.
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