The Brown County Commissioners are facing public backlash after approving a project to pave Pumpkin Ridge Road.
It is a one-way, gravel road leading to Mountain Tea State Forest. Currently, Pumpkin Ridge Road is about 16 feet wide. Because of the narrow road, cars need to pull off to the side to let an oncoming vehicle through. The project aims to improve safety and access to the forest.
Community members have debated the project for months, with those opposed saying it will disturb wildlife and bother residents who live in the area.
“It's going to be a scar, I think, on Brown County,” resident Charlie Shaw said. “I think it ruins a lot of the essence of Brown County.”
The Indiana Department of Transportation modified the plans in an attempt to downgrade its scope and address concerns. A previous plan proposed a 22-foot, two-lane road with two-foot shoulders on each side. The current plan calls for an 18-foot, two-lane road with two-foot shoulders on each side. People still aren’t happy with these changes.
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Despite strong opposition to the project at this week’s meeting, commissioners still voted 2-1 to approve an agreement with the Indiana Department of Transportation to invest approximately $6.5 million toward paving the road.
“How'd you guys sleep last night?” community member Melinda Moffitt asked the commissioners. “Because we didn't sleep well. I'm so concerned about nature. You're going to destroy the beautiful Brown County that we chose to live in. That's what's going to happen. They're going to destroy the trees, the wildlife, not to mention take our property.”
Chris Tuttle has lived on Pumpkin Ridge Road for 10 years. He says he hasn’t had any problems maintaining the gravel road himself and doesn’t see a need to pave it.
“This is not just about a road,” he said. “This is about our homes. This is about the forest. This is about the sweat, sacrifice and years of labor that built what we have for over a decade we have maintained the road ourselves. We cut the trees, we haul gravel, we grade the facilities. We try to keep everybody happy to the best of our ability. We took care of it because it mattered to us. It was ours to steward.”
Dana Patrick, who has lived in Brown County for over 30 years, said she doesn’t want her tax dollars used for paving a road people like Tuttle are already maintaining. She also expressed concern about a lack of transparency on the project.
“Leave Pumpkin Ridge Road and the residents alone,” she said. “Don't take any more money out of the pockets of all Brown County taxpayers for this project. I prefer to have my tax dollars be used for bridges to be repaired.”
Read more: Some Brown County homeowners like their one-lane gravel road, oppose state’s pricey upgrade
Commissioner Tim Clark, who voted to approve the project, said he believes the commission has been transparent. He said he’s addressed project details and concerns at past meetings.
“We are asking for justification before land is taken and ecosystems are altered forever,” Tuttle said. “Our homes are not expendable. Our land is not expendable.”
Community member Rich Stanley said he’d prefer spending money on pull-outs to allow cars to pass by safely.
“I just don't see how this is fiscally responsible when you have not investigated the less expensive options, especially when a less expensive option would be much more popular than the current INDOT proposal,” he said.
Commissioner Ron Sanders suggested tabling the vote for time to do a better investigation. But Clark pushed back, saying they’ve done the work to understand the project. He said he’s met with attorneys multiple times and is comfortable with how the contract is written.
And last month, commissioners met with the project team and property owners to review the plan and discuss less-invasive drainage solutions and options for a temporary road to be used during construction.
“We're comfortable with this,” Clark said. “We corrected the questions that we had. I like the fact we got a phase plan, so we can make adjustments as we go through this,” he said. “We did the walk through. We talked about how they were going to put a retaining wall in so we required less land. We talked about the different soil options that you had to manage the water demands, the runoff, to manage the drainage.”
A start date for the project has not been determined.
