City Council readjusts plan to fix streets in ‘critical’ need of repair
City council voted to add an additional $44.6 million to the overall street improvement budget on Monday.
This comes after the council received a street capital improvement report. The report identified the different needs of 55 streets that are unfunded. Back in 2012, city council approved a $212 million street improvement plan.
“We have developed some criteria to look at the street itself and evaluate the condition,” said Khalil Zaied, deputy city manager for public works and transportation. “It could be the number of pot holes, it could be the if there is any cracks, it could be the drainage issue, it could be sidewalks — all of those elements combined.”
The report states there are five streets in need of immediate funding:
– Brian Ray Circle
– Hawkins Blvd: Gateway East to North Loop
– Railroad Dr: Farah to Purple Heart
– Schuster Ave: Prospect to Campbell
– Ted Houghton Dr: Rancho Trail to Double Jay
Of those five roads, Hawkins will be the most expensive to improve. It’s estimated to cost nearly $21 million.
“After we — the council approves the final budget, we’ll be looking at these streets,” Zaied said. “We’ll define them exactly. We’ll start the design, and construction wouldn’t happen until two years at the earliest.”
Another issue the report identified is the that the pavement management decisions for the project were based on an assessment that was done back in 2008. That’s why city council approved funding for new pavement study to be done.
