Alderman Ron Barone expects the city’s roads will be getting some extra attention starting in October. At Tuesday’s meeting, the Common Council unanimously approved a resolution transferring $19,531 from the city’s contingency fund in order to pay for a four-person, temporary work crew. After the meeting, Mayor Ann Thane said she would sign the resolution.
The resolution comes after a series of prior committee meetings on the subject, one of which included Department of Public Works Foreman Ray Halgas and City Engineer Rich Miller on August 11. According to Barone, who spearheaded the effort, the crew will concentrate on the preparation work necessary to fill potholes.
“The crew goes ahead, they do all the saw cutting, square it out, get it all ready, so the paving crew can come right behind them and level it,” said Barone.
According to Barone, if a patch over a pothole is not level with the surrounding pavement, snow plows are likely to catch the edges and re-open the pothole in the winter.
“It just knocks it right out again and you have the potholes over and over again. This will alleviate, I think, quite a bit of the problem,” said Barone.
Barone said he hopes the crew will be able to work through October and the first two weeks of November. He also asked the other council members to suggest roads in their wards that need attention.
