Colonie public works commissioner Jack Cunningham presented a nearly $3 millions paving plan for this year at the town board’s Thursday, April 15 meeting.
Cunningham said last year the town passed a $10 million 5-year plan to improve roads and storm water drainage, and this year about 12.25 miles of road will be repaved.
About 48 roads are on the town’s agenda, with work expected to begin in May.
It’s a real work in progress to make sure we keep all the roads in good condition, Cunningham said.
Road replacement and repair will total $1.95 million, patchwork and driveway aprons will cost close to $200,000, striping, crack repair and signal improvements will come to $105,000 and drainage improvement projects will cost $675,000.
Colonie’s roads are rated on a one to 10 scale, with numbers one through five representing dirt roads. Cunningham said the town only owns roads numbered five through ten, and a majority of the roadwork will be done on grade six roads due to their condition and usage by residents.
`We have a couple of roads in the grade eight area we’re going to be working one,` Cunningham said.
Cunningham said only about 0.25 miles of grade five roads will be worked on because they do not serve a lot of residents.
`We haven’t prioritized them this year as part of our project,` he said, noting many serve in industrial capacities.
Cunningham said the project was prioritized based on proximity to other roads, the budget and completing roads not yet finished in the first place, in addition to usage and overall condition.
Extending road life, which normally is 12-15 years, was another criteria used.
Residents will be given three weeks notice about which roads will be repaired, and when.
In addition to the road repairs, there will be 29 separate drainage improvement projects including sink hole repairs, sump pump and culvert replacement and repairs and ditch work.
The town board passed a resolution to give Carver Sand and Gravel, LLC the contract to perform the paving.
Town Supervisor Paula Mahan asked Cunningham to investigate the possibility of including repairs to the parking lot at the William K. Sanford library, which has been troublesome for some time. She said some areas require cones to prevent drivers from driving into large holes in the pavement, and if it were financially feasible, it would be a great benefit to the town.
Mahan was thankful for the information provided by
Cunningham and said residents and the town board can get a better feel for what the future holds.
`It really makes it very clear as to where we are headed for 2010,` Mahan said.
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