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Road construction usually creates some confusion and a few inconveniences, but hardly ever does it bring the problems that College Avenue residents and merchants are facing right now. 

People who live along the mixed commercial-residential street say they are fed up with uncollected garbage that attracts rats and racoons. Meanwhile merchants say they must face not only the trash spilling onto their sidewalks, but they are getting ready to sue the city over street closures which block their supply trucks.  

College Avenue is under construction from Dwight Way to Alcatraz Avenue, a three-month-long project that has narrowed the road to one lane of traffic, heading only south, and removed all curbside parking. 

But the problem does not stop there. John Huffman, president of the Elmwood Merchants Association, said that his association might file a lawsuit against both the city and Councilmember Kriss Worthington because they failed to alert merchants or neighbors that Benvenue Avenue, which allows trucks to bring supplies to College Avenue, would be closed beginning Wednesday. In fact, they had been told just the opposite, that the block would remain open to through traffic. 

“We thought that we had an agreement with the city, but they made changes and didn’t tell us,” Huffman said. “We are in a very tough situation.” 

Worthington, councilmember for District 7, which includes part of College Avenue, said he had not heard about a lawsuit, but added that he has worked with the neighborhood to solve their problems during the construction process and recently raised money for the merchants association. 

Deputy City Manager Phil Kamlarz said he had not heard about a lawsuit either, but that the city has always had a good relationship with the merchants association. 

“We are trying to make it a convenience for everyone, but the street needs to be repaired,” Kamlarz said. 

College Avenue residents have complaints of their own. The city has not done its routine garbage pickups all this week, which is most likely the result of limited space for garbage trucks to drive through. 

John Tomakin, who lives on the 2600 block of College Avenue between Derby Street and Dwight Way said that his normal trash collection day is Monday, but garbage had not been collected as of Thursday afternoon.