Light at the end of the tunnel
IN THE CITY
Hopefully, you believe in the old saying of “No pain, no gain” and can apply it to all of the street and road construction that is going on this summer. The bad news is that there has been lots of it that undoubtedly has caused some traffic delays for you. The good news is it will soon be over and the end result will be some much improved asphalt surfaces.
Not all of the construction in the downtown is the result of City projects. Some construction is being done by the Presque Isle Utilities District and some by the Maine Department of Transportation.
The construction being done on Main Street in the downtown currently is under the direction of the Utilities District. New water and sewer piping is being installed to replace piping that is many decades old. This is being done in anticipation of the paving of Main Street by MDOT next year when state crews (or subcontractors) will pave the entirety of Main Street from Chapman Street to Aroostook Centre Mall. MDOT does not allow the excavation of newly paved streets for at least five years, so it is imperative that all underground work be done before that time.
The Utilities District is also installing new underground piping on Academy Street from Main Street to Second Street. The District’s projects on Academy and Main streets coupled with a similar project on north Main Street earlier in the year will total over $1 million.
MDOT is also performing some underground storm drainage work on Academy Street starting at Main Street and extending easterly up the hill. Once the underground work is complete, they will be milling the old pavement off the travel lanes and replacing it with new pavement for one mile. From there MDOT has a second project that involves the placement of Recycled Asphalt Pavement (RAP) overlaid by new pavement on Route 10 all the way to the Easton town line for a distance of nearly six miles.
A third MDOT project being done this year is to shim and overlay the Washburn Road with new pavement for a distance of 10 miles with other improvements. The state’s investment in these three projects for this year totals $5 million. All of the MDOT and PI Utilities projects are scheduled to be complete by the end of September.
The city has completed its street paving for the year, which included 15 streets measuring 3.6 miles long. The cost for asphalt paving and patching will be $400,000. Another 1.8 miles of country roads will be chip sealed in the next few weeks. This was a tough year as far as cost because asphalt prices, which follow the price of crude oil, were 11 percent higher than they were one year ago.
We thank you for your patience as you undoubtedly have had to endure some work zone construction delays, bumpy trenches, noise, and dust. With the resurfacing of two major routes leading into the city and the paving of the travel lanes on Academy Street, your ride should be much smoother by the beginning of October.
With the paving of Main Street and two other major routes next year, our hope is that the disruptions of this year will be more than offset by the new streets and roads that will be enjoyed for the years to come.
If you have questions on public works issues, please contact the Public Works Division at 764-2560.
Dana H. Fowler, P.E., is public services director for the city of Presque Isle. He can be reached at 760-2707 or via email at dfowler@presqueisleme.us.
