Road Construction

Street Maintenance & Repair

• Alley maintenance - Concrete and paved alleys are patched and swept as needed. Gravel alleys are graded and gravel is placed as time permits on a request basis. Consideration is being given to improving the alley maintenance program to provide maintenance to every alley each year. 
• Unpaved street maintenance - All unpaved streets are graded at least twice each year, some as frequently as five times each year. Approximately 400 tons magnesium chloride is applied to all unpaved streets in June and September annually to control dust and as needed throughout the summer months. Each spring new material is applied to the unpaved streets as needed to replace material that is lost through wind erosion and vehicles tracking the material off the street. Approximately 3,000-7000 tons of base will be installed this budget year.
• Painting - Center line and lane lines are painted each summer. Those in high traffic areas may be painted twice. School and pedestrian crosswalks are also painted each summer. Curb painting which denotes special parking restrictions (handicap parking, loading zones, and no parking zones) may only be done every other year if the existing paint is in good condition. Bicycle lane markings are installed on specific streets and two lines are used to provide a clearly designated path. Approximately 2,900 gallons of paint are used each year along with 6,000 pounds of glass beads.
• Pothole patching - 200-300 tons of hot and cold mix asphalt material is used annually to patch holes in the paved streets. A specialized mix was used for winter patching. Small cuts made by the Utilities Division to repair water leaks are repaired as are potholes caused by pavement failure. A lesser number of patches are made to repair cuts made by franchised utilities.
• Pavement Preservation- The City is implementing various methods to better preserve our roadways. Chip seal will also be utilized in areas where they can be most effective in prolonging the life of the street. Crack sealing is performed in the spring and fall as the weather allows.

Street Reconstruction

Street reconstruction entails the removal of the existing surface and up to 20 inches of the existing subgrade material. Geo Grid and Separation Fabrics are placed and the excavation is filled with crushed base prior to the new asphalt surface being placed. After a street has a reconstruction the surface will also have a chip seal applied within the first 3 years to help preserve our roadways.