By THOMAS P. WEAVER, HORIZON Editor

CELINA-After being closed for well over six months, officials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told the HORIZON last week the road here across Dale Hollow Dam “would be reopened by the end of April.”

The road was closed to traffic at the beginning of November 2009 and at that time the Corps said “the work may take up to six months.”

In a recent interview with Corps public affairs officer Allison Jarrett, the HORIZON learned the original completion date for the project was March 28, 2010, but Jarrett explained the project had recently been “extended three weeks” from that time, pushing the re-opening date on into this month.

According to Jarrett, project engineer Kimberly Warner contributed the extension of the timetable to weather and the fact there was more work that needed to be done than was originally planned.

“Kimberly (Warner) said the harsh winter we had and finding additional work that needed to be done set the project back a few weeks,” Jarrett said, “but with the better working conditions the spring weather has provided, the work will be complete by the end of the month.”

The original release from the Corps said the purpose of the road closure was “to provide space for cranes and other large equipment, and to ensure the safety of those performing the scheduled maintenance work–which included improvements to the railings, concrete repairs, and the replacement of head-gate cabling.”

The road is currently barricaded at the intersection of Walker Ridge Road and Will Terry Road near the south end of the dam and barricaded at the Dale Hollow Dam Road/Cut Through Road intersection at the north end of the dam.