Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com June 20, 2016 • Worcester Business Journal 13 >> R E G I O N A L F O C U S: W O R C E S T E R Don't miss this opportunity to network with the Central Mass and Metrowest business community! Make connections at one of our upcoming Fall events! Don't miss the party of the year! Join us for a night of celebration and networking as we honor the 40 Under Forty class of 2016! 15th ANNI VERSARY 15th ANNI VERSARY Presenting Sponsors To register or find out more about these events visit www.wbjournal.com/event IN PRINT | ONLINE | IN PERSON SEPTEMBER 14, 2016 5 – 7:30pm Mechanics Hall, Worcester Honoring female business leaders in Central Mass. Business Women In 2009 Business Women In 2009 Business Women In 2009 Business Women In 2009 Business Women In Outstanding Business Women In Outstanding Presenting Sponsors NOVEMBER 18, 2016 11:30am-2:00pm Tuckerman Hall, Worcester Accu-Clean Inc. "When Impressions Count" We're on top of the details! When it comes to delivering consistent quality, the proof is in the pudding. Let our established team of professional cleaners take care of all your cleaning needs, down to the last detail. Accu-Clean Inc offers: •Commercial - Industrial - Educational - Institutional •Facility Maintenance •Carpet & Upholstery Shampooing •Stripping & Refinishing Floors •Office Cleaning •Restroom Sanitation •General Labor •Post Construction Cleaning •Day Porter Service •On Call Cleaning •Free Estimates •Flexible Economic Pricing •Long Term Clients and Testimonials •No Long Term Contract Needed 1102 Pleasant Street Worcester, MA 01602 508-755-8166 www.accu-cleaninc.com A woman-owned business since 1987 • Serving Worcester County years and even recently," he said. "It's much more difficult for them to find a buyer for a house on a private street." Worcester City Councilor George Russell, who chairs the Standing Committee on Public Works, said some owners are hesitant to pay for conver- sion. It can be expensive – easily run- ning $15,000 for a single homeowner. Russell said some people are also prefer their streets the way they are. In fact, he said, he once lived on a private dirt road himself, and he was happy that it forced traffic to slow down. "My daughter was on a little tricycle," he said. "That was a plus for us." At the start of the current legislative session last year, State Rep. Daniel Donahue (D-Worcester) introduced a bill that would allow state money to help pay for the conversion of private roads. He said other priorities have kept the matter in committee. He hopes it will do better in the future. "It's an issue that doesn't just affect my district," he said. "It's an issue that affects quite a few communities." Other communities Leominster has a number of private ways, though they're not in the rough shape found in Worcester, said John Roseberry, senior engineering aide for the city DPW. Most date from the past 40 years, he said, created when devel- opers built subdivisions and ran out of money before finishing things like catch basins and manholes. Nearby, Fitchburg has around 45 miles of private streets, many of them built in the 1920s and '30s, said Lenny Laakso, commissioner of public works. "I can see why people complain, because they pay their property taxes like anybody else," Laakso said. Laakso knows about the issue from his personal life, because he has rela- tives who live on a private street. "I won't even go visit my cousin because my car would get destroyed going there," he said. "I mean they have absolute craters." n Kansas Street isn't' considered a public way in Worcester, so the city can't use state funds to maintain it. All the city does is plow snow from it.

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