Atlas bugged

By RALPH BARTHOLDT

Staff Writer

COEUR d’ALENE — Tim McCall has been feeling like flotsam.

For several weeks, McCall has been expectantly looking out the window of his business, Tom’s Diving, at 3340 N. Atlas Road, toward the construction on Seltice Way, less than a block from his door, where road closure signs have kept his customers away.

Since the signs went up in early November, no work has started on Atlas Road, which makes him question the signs’ purpose.

It’s been like this since early November.

“You don’t close the road unless you’re going to work on it, right?” he asked.

When contractors on the road project told him they would have to close Atlas, the lifeline to his shop, for a couple of weeks, McCall agreed.

The road work needed to get done, he said.

“But two weeks?” McCall said. “I thought, that’s pushing it.”

On Nov. 22 when the road was supposed to reopen, he went to work after losing two weeks of income. However, the blockades were still there and a new date blinked on road construction signs, telling motorists the road will continue to be closed until Dec. 8.

The lack of business because of the closed road has been severe.

“It’s killed us,” he said.

Normally, people this time of year come in to book diving lessons, sign up for group dives or trips, buy Christmas gifts, or get scuba tanks filled.

“Wintertime is not too awful busy,” he said.

But he can usually make a living. With the road closed last week, he didn’t come near his weekly quota.

“Our total gross last week was $19.50,” he said.

The income came from a customer who drove over the berms, disregarded the road closure signs and trundled the block from Seltice Way to his shop to have scuba tanks filled.

To the north, where Atlas Road sweeps down a hill before slipping under the Interstate 90 overpass, several warning and road closure signs have kept motorists away, he said.

Last week contractors prohibited his bookkeeper from going to work, and a few days earlier he was warned to obey the signs, but he didn’t, and subcontractors called police.

City engineer Chris Bosely said he wasn’t aware of the turmoil between McCall and traffic control subcontractors.

“It shouldn’t have gone down that way,” Bosely said. “We’re trying to resolve this.”

Project manager Matt Gillis, of Welch Comer Engineering, which is overseeing the Seltice Way project, said the only work left for Atlas Road before winter includes a median in the middle that splits traffic entering the roundabout at the intersection of Atlas and Seltice.

“We’re working on opening Atlas as soon as we can,” Gillis said. “We’re working with the contractor to make sure we’re not isolating anyone down there.”

Tom’s Diving is the sole retailer on the block in an industrial zone that includes a storage unit business, a heavy equipment contractor and a lawn maintenance service.

Until the splitter island is complete, hopefully by the end of this week, McCall will continue to keep a lookout for customers with his yellow Lab, Buddy, who slaps his tail when he sees a customer approach.

One westbound lane on Seltice Way will continue to be closed as contractors complete landscaping, curbs and driveways on the north side of the road, Gillis said.