By Thia James

$4.9M gets 72 city blocks paved in 2014

Feb 11, 2015 | 11:18 AM

The City of Prince Albert outspent its annual $4.9 million on paving the equivalent of 72 city blocks in 2014.

The City spent 96.5 per cent of the annual $4 million paving budget, or $3,858,821, last year, meaning $141,179 was left unspent. Crews constructed 4.3 kilometres (kms) of new roads, and resurfaced 6.7 kms of existing roads.

Over the past two years the program has been in existence, crews have paved 23.3 kms of roads, or 152 city blocks.

The money over and above the $4 million paving program came from other funds, including the land fund for new roads in subdivisions, road repairs, utility projects, as well as funding for road construction work held over from 2012.

Mayor Greg Dionne explained during Monday evening’s executive committee meeting that the work held over from last year isn’t related to running over on time, it’s more so issues that pop up while work is happening.

GST Holiday

Federal government's two-month GST holiday begins

25m ago

Imminent need

Council set to discuss possible location for homeless shelter on 15th Street

6h ago

International Spotlight

P.A.'s Howe one of 4 Sask. born players named to Canada's World Junior roster

21h ago

“Sometimes when you dig up a street to resurface it, you discover once you’re halfway through it that there’s something wrong with the base. So then that changes the cost to do that street.”

Dionne said the public works department is told to spend only $4 million, but at the end of the day, the work done could end up exceeding that. He said this is why some of the streets on the paving program’s list may not be done in 2014.

Those unfinished roads will be on the 2015 paving list, he added.

It’s not just asphalt that’s being repaired, Dionne said.

The projects completed in 2014 include the checking, repairing and rebuilding of 150 catch basins, 186 manholes, and 111 water valves.

Coun. Lee Atkinson asked administration to thoroughly explain which streets were not completed in 2014, and why those streets were not paved.

But he is also concerned about the possibility that the City is budgeting for work that can’t possibly be finished within a year.

“Because if we can’t do $4 million [of] work, and can only do $3.5 [million], then we shouldn’t be taxing and carrying forward such amounts,” Atkinson said.

In the 2015 budget, council approved another $4 million in funding for the paving program. The City has not released the list of this year’s scheduled paving projects.

However, Mayor Greg Dionne confirmed a major water and sewer main replacement and resurfacing project. The announcement regarding the Second Avenue West area between the foot of the bridge and 15th Street West came during last month’s State of the City Address. This work is expected to start after the Victoria Day long weekend in May.

Roads paved in 2014

• Branion Drive (22nd Street East to Longworth Place)

• Barsky Place

• 12th Street West (Second Avenue to Third Avenue)

• 13th Street West (Second Avenue to Sixth Avenue)

• 14th Street West (Second Avenue to Fourth Avenue)

• Sixth Avenue West (13th Street to 15th Street)

• Fourth Avenue West (13th Street to 14th Street)

• Kernaghan Crescent

• Muzzy Drive (Kernaghan Crescent to Kernaghan Crescent)

• Longpre Crescent

• Feschuk Place

• Highway 3 south turning lanes at Marquis Road

• Barton Drive

• Bradbury Drive

• Grey Owl Crescent (Conroy Place to Chester Place)

• South Industrial Drive

• Sixth Avenue West (22nd to Mahon Drive)

• Casey Road

• Fifth Avenue North West (Nordale Entrance)

2014 paving spending breakdown

1. Reconstruction (carried forward from 2012) $ 383,259

2. Utility paving projects $ 869,155

3. Road patching $ 74,933

4. Subdivision road construction (Land Fund) $ 733,252

5. Paving projects $2,870,938

Total = $4,931,537

tjames@panow.com

On Twitter: @thiajames