It's been more than six years since six Hurricane families signed over a                                 right-of-way to their                                 road, greeing to do so                                only if city officials                                  paved and maintained                                 the road.

Most of those families                                 are still waiting. Two                                     have moved away.

None of them are                                     happy with the city that they say have betrayed their trust, not only with refusing to pave the road, but with putting in a Wal-Mart instead of the promised office park and Marshall University satellite campus.

John and Mattie Clay, Karl Fitzwater, David A. Gwynn, Dolores Martin, Mike and Sally McDonald, and David and Melissa Mullins signed the agreement dated June 3, 2001.

Fitzwater sold his A-frame home and pond to the Wal-Mart developer. It was torn down to make room for the yet-to-be-opened  supercenter. The Mullins sold their home to make room for the soon-to-be opened Hurricane Marketplace. The Clays and Dolores Martin, now Dolores Hallburn, the wife of this publisher, want to move but have yet to receive what they call "Decent offers." Gwynn was not available for comment.

The City of Hurricane recently named the road Grace Drive. However, residents living next to the dirt and gravel road say there is nothing "graceful" about the street and that city officials are a "disgrace" for failing to pave the road.

Meanwhile, Hurricane officials are telling contractors that the road belongs to the city, despite the broken agreement and a court order by Putnam Circuit Judge Norbert "Ed" Eagloski in 2005 that the town failed to prove its ownership.

"I don't have a clue why they haven't," says Peak. "To be honest, I don't even remember that agreement. "I don't remember that ever being brought to me. If we had an agreement it should have been honored."

However, PutnamLIVE.com attended more than one Hurricane City Council meeting where Clay and others complained about the dirt road.

Prior to the 2003 Hurricane Municipal Election, some residents went so far as to hang signs at the end of the road reading, "Mayor Peak, pave our road." Now retired City Inspector Ed Norris told PutnamLIVE.com then that he pulled the signs down for "safety reasons."

The city has spread some gravel on the road, but has never actually paved the street.

Adding insult to injury, the residents saw asphalt put down in front of the Wal-Mart entrance that stops at the foot of their road, right in front of Gwynn's home.

PutnamLIVE.com sent an email to Hurricane's Disputed Mayor Scott D. Edwards and City Manager Benjamin Newhouse asking them to comment on the city's failure to uphold its end of the agreement. So far, there has not been a response to that email.

Neither was associated with the city when the agreement was signed, however, neither has taken action to fix the problem.