Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, October 5, 1995 TAG: 9510060003
SECTION: NEIGHBORS PAGE: E-10 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHARLES STEBBINS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Most of the work will be on Lee and Jackson avenues and Pollard Street.
Greg Secrist, assistant town manager/engineer, said the primary reason for the delay is to coordinate the sidewalk work with repair or replacement of storm drains and other underground utilities that won't be done until next spring. Some of that work might require tearing up some sidewalk, he said.
He said the coming of winter also played a role in the decision by the town's Public Works Committee to delay the work. Sidewalks are made of concrete, and Secrist said, concrete work is best done in warm weather.
He said he also wants to be sure that when the sidewalks are replaced, they will be done with the best concrete available and with expert workmanship.
Sidewalks built with good quality cement, properly mixed and put in place by expert workmanship should last at least 20 years, he said. However, the present ones are flaking and breaking up after after eight or nine years.
But Secrist is not blaming anyone. He said the cause of the current troubles is unknown. "I don't know if it was bad concrete, poor workmanship, the effects of ice or some other winter weather or a combination of several things."
In any event, he hopes to avoid whatever happened last time. Secrist said he can't control the weather, but he can control the quality of the materials and workmanship.
No cost has been calculated, but Secrist estimated that materials alone will cost about $35,000.
Labor costs cannot be estimated now, he said, because that will depend on whether the work is done by town crews or a private contractor.
Secrist said that when members of the Public Works Committee first considered the sidewalk work they thought it could be taken care of by capping. But he said they found that capping would cost only slightly less than replacement. And, he said, capping probably would not last as long as replacement.
by CNB