PARMA, Ohio — News 5 Investigators have reported on mistakes made along Sprague Road during a multi-million dollar construction project in Cuyahoga County. There were cracked driveways, chipped cement, backed-up basements and more.
One man from Parma took to the internet and called us to get something done, and now that’s happening.
RELATED: Parma man turns to YouTube to express frustration with Sprague Road construction project
“This is an apron that was poured. You can see, there’s a step right there,” said Parma resident Tony Pavia during our initial report on Sprague Road.
He pointed out the problems during his posted YouTube videos about his construction frustrations. Shortly after our story aired, Pavia posted new videos, this time of repairs to the problem areas like his driveway.
“The corners are clean. There’s no breaks,” said Pavia recently. “The cut is clean. There’s no chips. Water flows freely downhill away from my driveway. It doesn’t back up like it did.”
And the repairs didn’t stop at his property. Down the street, on the same day, another driveway was fixed. His neighbors got some leveling at the end of their driveway, too.
Pavia is happy to hear that his call to action has sparked change in his neighborhood.
“Taxes have gone up and inflation is a real thing and we protect our property value,” he told us. “And one of the things you do is take care of your property and make sure things are done right.”
In our initial report, we asked the county what it thought about some of the concerns from residents out here. Now, Pavia has told us it really does feel like the county is taking these issues to heart.
“I let their manager know they did a good job, because they did do a good job,” said Pavia.
“We understand that just about all of our projects are a disruption to someone,” said Mike Tworzydlo, an engineer with Cuyahoga County.
He said any cracks or complications are put on a list and usually taken care of at the end of projects by his crews.
“They also understand that if there is an issue, it’s personal to someone,” said Tworzydlo. “And so, we try to at least assure them if it’s something that we can take care of we will.”
He said he’s happy to hear people’s problems are getting attention.
“All of our projects we’re working right in front of people’s front yards. And so, it’s like someone working in your house. We try to minimize the disruption but there’s always going to be some. So, we try to do whatever we can,” Tworzydlo told us.
Meanwhile, Pavia also gave a tip of the cap to News 5 Investigators for helping to move the fixes forward.
“Thank you. What you do is good work,” said Pavia. “You’re definitely looking out for the community. You looked out for my community and you looked out for me. I appreciate that.”
This story originated from a call to our News 5 Investigator Tip Line. If you have a story you think should be investigated, that number is 216-431-HELP (4357). Or you can email us at InvestigatorTips@WEWS.com.
