Today's Feature

Fairview Interchange Hearing.

The Missouri Department of Transportation held a public hearing for the Fairview Interchange late last week. The hearing was attended by 35 people. Several representatives from MoDOT and the City of Carthage were present with illustrations of the planned changes on display.

The project includes widening for acceleration and deceleration lanes. Due to the placement of Chapel Road the southbound acceleration ramp will branch off of Chapel road instead of Fairview. For this purpose Chapel road will be widened and resurfaced between Fairview Avenue and the ramp.

According to the literature released for this event the interchange will promote future development of the industrial area as well as reducing the truck traffic through rest of the town.

There is one property owner near the interchange who has not yet approved annexation. City Administrator Tom Short said that the property owner was present at the hearing and expressed reservations about the project. A representative from MoDOT said that the hearing had received primarily middle to positive feedback about the plans with a few exceptions.

MoDOT plans to begin right-of-way acquisition on September 2005 and has loosely scheduled the roadway construction for 2007. The cost for the construction is pre-estimated to cost $3,021,000 to be split between MoDOT, Carthage and Federal Funds.

Lane closures on Route 71, Fairview Avenue and Chapel Road should be expected during the construction. The total length of the project is .74 miles.

‘Course the fact is ever’one makes mistakes on occasion. If ya set aside those few who just don’t ever seem ta learn, mistakes are part of the learnin’ experience.

A farmer I worked for used ta say if you aren’t makin’ mistakes, you aren’t doin’ anything.

Apparently I was doin’ a plenty while I was workin’ for him. I learned why he told me not to get too close to that mud bog in the field with the tractor. I remembered his words as I sat axle deep in mud. I don’t think he was all that philosophical when he had to get his combine and come to pull me out.

This is some fact, but mostly,

Just Jake Talkin’.

Keeping the Basement Dry

Q: I have a small basement — 20 by 15 feet — that has no windows and is very damp. Since I directed rainwater away from the house, the cement block walls are pretty dry. We also wrapped all of the water pipes and they don’t sweat as much. I was hoping you could advise me as to the best sealer for the walls and the concrete floor. — Thomas D., via e-mail

A: Sealers will only work as long as the water pressure on the other side of the walls remains low. The concrete blocks facing the "dirt" side of the house are unsealed and therefore still vulnerable to water seeping through them. After a while, you’ll have a wet basement again.

You have already taken steps to reduce this possibility by redirecting the rainwater drainage. The next step is to make sure the grading outside the house isn’t directing groundwater back toward the walls. If the ground slopes toward the house, rather than away from it, then groundwater is building up against the foundation and basement walls.

Keep dirt from piling up around the mudsill (sill plate) that runs between the foundation and house walls. As a rule, a 6-inch clearance should be maintained between the ground and the mudsill. This also applies to any ground-level (basement) windows and vents you install.

Additionally, find out if any drainage options were built into the basement. For example, some basement floors are created by pouring the concrete over a bed of crushed rock that contains drainage tiles slanted toward a drain point (sump). These are called "floating slabs" and are often built in areas prone to groundwater flooding, like the Northeast. It’s possible to modify the basement floor to increase drainage (or seal it further), but I’d recommend consulting a professional before taking more drastic measures.

Once the groundwater situation is addressed, you can look into sealing the walls and improving ventilation. Installing windows will help bring air and sunlight into the room, but they need to be properly installed and sealed to keep moisture from entering and condensation from forming. Check vents leading from appliances like the dryer and dishwasher too. If they ventilate into the basement, they could be bringing additional moisture into that space. Redirect those vents to the outside of the house.

If moisture is only an occasional problem (such as during damp spring months), bring in a dehumidifier to take care of the excess.

HOME TIP: Any area of the house where water or excess moisture is present (such as the kitchen, bathroom or basement) should have ground-fault circuit interrupter outlets installed. GFCI receptacles switch off the instant an electrical problem occurs, reducing the risk of electric shock.