County stretches repaving funds

By Peter H. Milliken

Escalating fuel prices will limit paving mileage this year, the engineer says.

YOUNGSTOWN — Mahoning County isn’t getting as much mileage for its repaving money as it got in previous years.

The county will repave 23 miles of roads in a $1.9 million effort this year.

That figure is more than the county spent in some other recent years, but, because of inflation in fuel and asphalt prices, the money doesn’t go as far as it did a few years ago, said county Engineer Richard Marsico.

Five to 10 years ago, $1.9 million would have paved 45 miles of roads, not 23, he said. Last year, the county repaved 21 miles of roads for $1.7 million.

“Asphalt costs have almost doubled since 2000,” observed Marilyn Kenner, chief deputy county engineer. “Asphalt binder is made from oil,” Marsico noted.

This year’s $1,946,535 program will include $950,000 in Ohio Public Works Commission grant money, $496,535 in local money from the county engineer’s office and $500,000 from the county’s recycling division (Green Team).

The recycling division money, derived from landfill waste dumping fees, is for repair work on five roads damaged by heavy landfill-bound truck traffic.

The Green Team money is being used for repaving on Struthers, Beard, Middletown, Beloit-Snodes and Smith-Goshen roads, which are in townships that have landfills. The Green Team money also serves as local share money for the OPWC funds.

The work on 15 roads in 12 townships will begin this summer, and the county hopes to have it completed by the end of October, Marsico said.

“Duck Creek is probably one of the worst roads in the county, especially before we got it patched,” Marsico said, adding that East Parkside Drive in Boardman has some extremely deteriorated sections.

In addition to the $1.9 million program, the county will use a no-interest $600,000 loan from OPWC to repave North Bailey Road from Mahoning Avenue to Silica Road in Jackson Township. The loan will be repaid in $60,000 annual installments over 10 years.

This section of the four-lane Bailey Road, which features an Interstate 76 interchange, is heavily traveled by trucks from three trucking companies on that road and by trucks serving the General Motors Lordstown plant, Marsico said. FedEx will soon move its terminal to North Bailey Road, he added. The county commissioners will soon award the repaving contract for these roads.

“We have other roads that should be paved this year, but funds are not available,” Marsico said.

“Although we can’t pave a road in every township every year, we try to spread it around so that every township gets some service,” Kenner said. The county has 14 townships.

“We do a selection process, and we base it on the condition of the roads, traffic and how much we spend to maintain the roads, such as pothole patching,” Marsico said.

Marsico said last winter’s rough weather created a severe pothole problem, which was caused by constant freeze and thaw cycles.

In a separate project, Mahoning Avenue in Austintown will undergo $1.8 million worth of repaving and other improvements this year in the five-mile stretch from Meridian Road to Meander Reservoir.

That project is being paid for by $1,440,000 in federal highway funds and $360,000 in local funds. The county borrowed the $360,000 last fall and plans to repay it from gasoline tax and motor vehicle registration fees, the engineer said.

milliken@vindy.com