David Rafferty, a resident of Center Street in Old Greenwich, stands next to the replacement railing the town is installing by a creek on Center Street. Rafferty says that he and his neighbors feel metal guardrails are out of place here. (Bob Luckey/Staff photo)

After residents of Center Drive in Old Greenwich protested the town's decision to rip out a split-timber fence on their street and replace it with metal and wood guardrails, town officials squashed the project Wednesday.

First Selectman Peter Tesei said the town will stop its plan to put the guardrails along a 100-foot portion of the road bordering a small creek, which runs between the road and several homes.

"The Department of Public Works Highway Division will cease the installation of the guardrail fencing on Center Drive at this time and at some point in the future, replace the existing split-rail fence with another split-rail fence," Tesei wrote in a letter to Commissioner of the Department of Public Works, Amy Siebert.

On Monday, an independent contractor hired by the town's Highway Division began removing a portion of the old fencing that bordered Cedar Mill Creek, prompting outrage among those who live behind it. A day later, Joseph Roberto, the town's highway superintendent, halted work after only a small section of the fence had been replaced.

Tesei's intervention was a victory for Center Drive residents who were pleased that their concerns received a quick response.

"I think this is smart," said David Rafferty, president of the Old Greenwich Association. "What happened was a lot of people started sending letters to the selectman's office. He read them and understood where people were coming from. No one asked for a change."

Rafferty said neighbors felt the wood and metal guardrail was an eyesore, as well as unsafe for children who might play on it.

"It's a quality-of-life issue," said Rafferty, whose house sits directly behind the area where the town began installing the guardrails. "People have spent a lot of time and energy to make this neighborhood attractive."

Roberto said Tuesday that the timber fence was in terrible shape, however, and was not protecting the trench on the side of the road that leads down to the creek bed.

"In the past we were called to make a repair on what was the existing split-rail fence that had fallen into disrepair. It wasn't very stable and it was almost impossible to fix," said Roberto.