Street Repairs: The Department is aware of the condition of many of the city streets and alleyways where contractors and city workers have been required to cut into pavement to install utilities or sewer laterals. New contruction and utility repairs sometime require streets to be cut for access to water, sewer and even power and telephone utility cabling. Although they try to repair these areas as soon as possible, the weather and material availability create delays. The Department appreciates the residents' concerns about these "bumps" in an otherwise nicely paved street, and they are fully aware of where each of these areas are, and will get to them as soon as possible.
Paving Needs: Around the city, we have approximately 250 miles of pavement in the first community alone to maintain, and most are in need of some sort of maintenance or replacement. Paving is very costly, approximately $250,000--$400,000 per mile depending on the size of the job and the existing roadway integrity. A number of actors must be considered when prioritizing which streets are to be repaired:
1.Age of existing pavement
2.Integrity of existing pavement
3.Traffic use
4.Status of underground utilities
5.Number of structures on the block
6.The cost of repair today as opposed to waiting a year or two
With the coming installation of new water lines, the whole picture of which streets will be repaired in the next couple of years has changed. The areas where the new water lines are going to be installed will be the next ones receiving new paving, once the lines are installed. Streets previously selected for paving this year will most likely not be paved, because there's no sense in paving a street to last 10 years and the digging it up in three to put in new water lines. As soon as it is determined by City Council which streets will be paved and which ones will be patched, it will be announced at the next Town Hall meeting and a map with time lines will be posted at City Hall.
Street Signs: Our street signs are high maintenance! Blowing sand, wind, heat all take their toll on the signs to the point where they can't be read. The cost to the city per sign is $48 for just the sign and $180 for a sign, pole and bracket. Sign replacement is an ongoing and continuous project for the city. The Public Works Department understands the concerns people have about emergency vehicles not being able to find them if their street sign is missing, but our Public Safety Departments have memorized the entire street layout in the city and they will find you!
Adopt-A-Street Program: While the grant funds are expended for this program, there are a few signs still available for citizens or businesses who want to adopt a section of street or highway.
