Wet weather is hard on roads. So is hot, dry weather, Bill King told Allen County commissioners Tuesday morning.
“When it’s hot and dry, you have more water leaks in town,” from dirt pulling away from mains, said King, director of Public Works. “It’s the same with roads. The heat causes expansion and causes them to heave and crack.
“I drove old 169 from Iola to Humboldt Monday night and it’s pretty bad,” King said. “We’ll be filling cracks before long,” to prevent moisture from seeping into the road and causing further problems.
While cracks are a concern for the county’s 180 miles of hard-surfaced roads, rock roads also sustain damage from heat and drought.
“When they get hard, they’re difficult to grade,” King said. “About all you can do is blade rock from one side to the other and fill holes. You also get a lot of washboarding at intersections, from vehicles starting and stopping.”
Budget concerns are a part of the equation.
King told commissioners he would forego chip-and-seal treatment of 1400 Street (old U.S. 169) from a mile south of Iola to the Allen-Anderson counties line, as well a few miles of Oregon Road north of Iola.
“I’m watching my budget,” he said.
Cost of maintaining roads and bridges during 2013 is expected to be a little over $2.3 million. This year’s budget is just under $2.2 million.
While some county road projects have been put on hold, King noted a mile of Texas Road was completely rebuilt from 1400 Street into Carlyle and the county was assisting smaller towns with street projects.
“We’re doing chip-and-seal in LaHarpe this week,” he said, noting county costs were fuel and labor. “LaHarpe is paying for the oil.”
RICHARD Hurst said restoring facades of two old business buildings that house Humboldt Senior Center would cost about $15,000.
He pulled away tin covering the front to examine the structure.
Work would entail repairing and replacing windows and their frames, as well as stabilizing brick. Hurst, a Humboldt contractor, suggested power washing the brick surface, replacing some bricks and then applying a protective sealant.
A project of Humboldt’s Downtown Action Team is to have the fronts of downtown building restored to their original facings. Commissioners took no action after hearing Hurst’s report.
