Tuesday evening, Circleville Council agreed to try to catch up on city streets with a new approach to paving.
Service Director Don Sherman explained "mill and fill" is the usual way to repave streets, where the top surface is ground off, and new asphalt is laid down. But most of the worst streets were the ones done in the last 10 years with that method.
Sherman said the city learned from paving experiments last year which disappointed many residents.
So the department is drawing from experience in other municipalities for an improved version of paving that is usually done in rural areas. He says it's a little cheaper, not as smooth...but lasts much longer.
With the improved "double chip and micro-surface," he says this may allow the city to catch up with years of deferred street maintenance.
Council approved almost a million dollars for streets, $500,000 for water, and $200,000 for sewer work in 2018. Only Barry Keller voted against the ordinance after questioning the experimental paving.
Kevin Coleman regularly reports on Chillicothe & Circleville councils and local culture