Lake Hopatcong businesses worry as DOT delays I-80 lane reopening
The DOT originally stated that two westbound lanes were slated to open in nine days. It has been pushed to the end of May.
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The New Jersey Department of Transportation says sinkhole repairs along I-80 are taking longer than expected.
Two westbound lanes were slated to reopen by May 4, but that has been pushed back until the end of the month. Two eastbound lanes are still on target to reopen by the middle of May. All lanes are expected to open by June 25.
“If they can get Route 80 fully open by June 25 - that's a week after Father's Day - that would be fantastic for everyone,” said Lisa Palanchi, the COO of Camp Six, Inc.
Camp Six oversees watersports, mini golf and dining along Lake Hopatcong. During the summer, almost half of the pier’s visitors are tourists.
“Even for the locals, by the time they deal with that traffic and get up here, they just want to go home,” Palanchi said.
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The DOT says the delay is because sonic drilling is taking longer than expected. The Windlass Restaurant has applied for emergency grant funding, but even the $15,000 maximum award is a fraction of what it has lost.
“They’re down almost $55,000 in the first quarter, year-to-year, right now, and that’s our offseason,” Palanchi said. “The news today with the road - the two westbound lanes - not being reopened by May 15 is certainly going to hinder that as well, because again, now is when we really start to pop.”
After all that locals have been through, a day at the lake can go a long way.
"It's a good stress relief,” Palanchi said. “If you're a little stressed driving your car, it's a good time to stop and maybe chill down a little bit, have a drink, have something to eat, go out and exercise, and then move on your way home.”
