Early Saturday morning, eight local officials piled into a bus with coffee and doughnuts to tour the Athens’ streets and evaluate the city’s infrastructure.
Director of Engineering and Public Works Andy Stone led the annual infrastructure tour, which has occurred for more than 10 years, to show Athens City Council members and other city officials the condition of the city’s streets and to explain future infrastructure-improvement projects firsthand.
The city has about $400,000 of asphalt paving slated for this summer, Stone said, including paving after other projects have been completed.
That’s about $50,000 more in paving than 2011’s total, Stone said, adding that the Street Rehabilitation Fund and the Street Fund, which are sourced from small additions to the income tax, will fund the paving.
“Every city always has more infrastructure in need than money to repair all of it,” Stone said.
One of the most significant projects scheduled for this summer is the North Court Street project, which will close the thoroughfare from about Fern Street to Carpenter Street from July 1 until completion, Stone said.
The project, which is estimated to cost more than $400,000, will replace failing sewer lines running under the street that are more than 80 years old.
Grosvenor Street will also see significant construction this summer after slips damaged the road and caused the city to force residents to move to prevent injury and property loss, Stone said.
“This hill has been slipping since ’84,” Stone said. “Grosvenor will look completely different come September.”
The project will repair the damaged road and construct retaining walls to prevent further slipping.
Stone also spoke about several possible projects that would occur in the future, including significant improvements to the city’s waste-water treatment plant, repaving and water drainage improvements to southern Richland Avenue, postponed repairs to the Oxbow Bridge, and paving and repairs to the roads of University Estates.
All told, those projects would cost more than $20 million.
Also on the tour were the sites of past and possible future improvements funded by the Safe Routes to Schools program, which is designed to promote safe walking habits for local students.
Councilwoman Chris Fahl, D-4th Ward, said the program has been a great success and that use of grants to fund improvements should continue to be pursued.
Stone said his department works hard to prioritize infrastructure improvements and save the city as much money as possible, and that Council has been very cooperative in funding the projects deemed necessary.
“Council has always been very supportive,” Stone said. “I feel sorry for cities I hear about that have conflicts between engineering and council.”
Councilman Kent Butler, D-1st Ward, said communication, like the street tour, makes cooperation much easier.
"(The tour) is incredibly helpful,” Butler said. “It’s great to see the needs of other wards and see what improvements need to be made.”
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