MANSFIELD — About 10 percent of Mansfield streets will be resurfaced in 2023, an effort funded by the voter-approved “Pothole Haters” tax.
City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a proposal from city engineer Bob Bianchi to resurface about 34 of the city’s 321 miles of roads at a cost of about $6.4 million.
2023 City of Mansfield road resurfacing plan
(Above is a downloadable PDF of the 2023 City of Mansfield street resurfacing program approved by City Council on Tuesday evening. It has maps showing the streets and also has street lists by ward in the city.)
At that price, the work will cost an estimated $188,235 per mile.
“Each road that has not been resurfaced in the last five years was given a rating,” said Bianchi, who credited the work of Eli Jordan, project planner in his office. “All 321 miles were reviewed and looked at.
“(Jordan) did a lot of work in the field, put all of this together, worked very hard on it and this is his first year with the city,” Bianchi said. “He has done a great job and this is one of the larger programs that we have.”
The city receives about $3.7 million annually through the 0.25-percent income tax that has assisted with local street repairs for more than three decades.
The four-year tax was approved again by city residents in 2021. It pays for the bulk of the work through the city’s streets fund, though some comes from the water fund and the sewer fund since the work includes water valves and storm sewers.
Bianchi told council this year’s proposal is robust. Typically, the city resurfaces 23 to 25 miles annually.
“We’ve had some additional cash build up in the fund over the years. Typically when we do a program, we have a (deduction) at the end of the year in the contract, so that money goes back into the fund.
“So we have a little bit extra dollars this year to spend and we plan to do so,” Bianchi said.
The engineer said he hopes to solicit bids for the work soon.
Bianchi also told council that his office would work Columbia Gas, which plans several projects in the city in 2023.
“We are trying to work with them and they are working with us to make sure that we don’t resurface the road and in the following year, they come through and do all their work,” he said.
Also on Tuesday, City Council:
— approved spending an additional $7,574 to purchase two 2022 Ford F-550 dump trucks with snowplow packages from Valley Ford Truck, according to state pricing contracts. Council had previously approved spending $224,884. The vehicles were ordered in May, but have not been built yet and prices have risen, resulting in the increase.
— approved allocating an additional $7,930 to purchase two 2024 F-650 dump trucks with snowplow packages from Valley Ford Truck, according to state pricing contracts. Council had previously approved spending $300,188. The vehicles were ordered in May, but have not been built yet and prices have risen, resulting in the increase.
— approved legislation putting the renewal of a 1/2-percent income tax on the May 2 primary ballot for the city’s safety forces.
