Select Board member Shawn McDonald is not happy about the condition of Route 6. At the February 6 Select Board meeting, McDonald ranted about businesses that have turned portions of Route 6 into what he called a “pigsty” by neglecting property.

A letter from the state Department of Transportation initiated McDonald’s criticism. The letter regarded an issue with overgrown plants separating the New Bedford Country Club from Route 6. McDonald said vegetation — which the country club uses as a screen — is an eyesore.

“Buy some arborvitaes and cut down the noxious weeds and vines. There’s nothing wrong with that, but they’re allowing this to happen,” McDonald said, adding that most residents and businesses take care of their properties up to the road, and he feels the country club should be no different.

He continued to call out several specific properties, including run-down houses (some of which are already slated for demolition) and the King's Inn Gentlemen's Club. He also blamed rehab center patients for vandalism at the Town Donut Shop and one of the used car dealerships.

“Everybody used to say Route 6 from Cross Road to Westport used to be a honky tonk. Well you know something, it’s not far from the truth. It’s getting to be a little sickening seeing it every single day,” McDonald said.

McDonald also touched upon a long-standing grievance: shopping carts left abandoned near the Cross Road-Route 6 intersection. In previous meetings, he raised the issue, noting that it’s both unsightly and dangerous for motorists.

“They finally pulled the shopping carts out of the retention pond at Walgreens. They pulled them out and there was ice all over them,” McDonald said.

Mickelson suggested that the Select Board could take a more active role in improving Route 6, adding that the proposed expansion of the Dartmouth Woods apartment complex could serve as a catalyst for new businesses.

Selectman Shawn McDonald rants about the condition of State Road. Video courtesy: Dartmouth Community TV