Staff writer
Hillsboro City Council members unanimously agreed Tuesday that $12,000 is not too steep a price to pay to avoid a “stupid-looking” street.
City Administrator Larry Paine presented a change order to the council, explaining additional work needed on Cedar Street where Barkley Construction is in the process of tearing out and replacing worn asphalt and broken curb and guttering.
When the council approved the original bid, they left a 148-foot section of road off specification sheets because asphalt there was still in good condition.
“It looks dumb and stupid now to have that part of the street left as is,” Paine said. “We should make the whole block look nice. I keep thinking how it would feel to be the only person on that street with the crummy old asphalt in front of my house when everyone else has brand new pavement.”
“I believe the proper term is funky,” council member Bob Watson said. “No one wants to have a funky looking street.”
Paine said Barkley is about half done with the entire street improvement project in Hillsboro, which includes Cedar, Date, and Birch sections.
“Most of the work on Date is done and they are tearing out the second block of Cedar right now,” he said. “They will be removing dirt and putting gravel back in there for now.”
Paine said work on Cedar would concentrate on the east side of the street to accommodate a citizen scheduled for surgery and needing access to her home as soon as possible.
Street work in front of Flint Hills Rural Electric on Cedar in the first block north of D Street is complete, providing a glimpse of what the other streets will look like when finished.
“I went by and looked and was impressed,” council member Barney McCarty said. “It looks pretty good.”
Council members approved a Barkley pay estimate for $91,465 to cover work done in the past several weeks. The total cost of the street improvement project is $391,000, plus the $12,000 change order. All money is 100 percent reimbursed to the city from the Community Development Block Grant program.
Council members also approved a $2,000 payment to Ranson Financial Consultants, required by CDBG rules, to pay for grant paperwork.