Replacing bricks with asphalt is economic reality
HOULTON, Maine — Back in the late 1980s and early 1990s the town underwent a major renovation project to revitalize its downtown area.
That project, which totaled $2.1 million, included a complete rebuilding of the roads, sidewalks, culverts and storm drains, as well as new lighting fixtures throughout Market Square and Main Street. A local bond of $1.4 million was taken out and paired with a Community Development Block Grant in the amount of $725,000 to cover the project.
Since that time, the roads have been cared for by the town’s Public Works Department, but little has been done to maintain the sidewalks, particularly the bricked portions that were done for aesthetics.
“Given that it’s been 25 years since the downtown revitalization took place, we are not in terrible shape,” said Nancy Ketch, Houlton’s community and economic development director. “However, we definitely recognize that we need to do something. At least we are ahead of the game from where we were back in the ‘80s.”
The town of Houlton is preparing a grant application through the state’s Transportation Alternatives program to replace the sidewalks downtown and held a public hearing Aug. 3 to gather input on which type of surface residents would like to see for the new sidewalks.
Only nine people attended the hearing.
Patrick Adams of the Maine Department of Transportation said the town could apply for up to $400,000 in grant funds for the sidewalk project, provided the town kick in $100,000 for the local match. However, there is no guarantee the town would be approved for the funds.
“The Transportation Alternatives program is federally funded through the Highway Administration,” Adams explained. “The primary focus with these funds is to help communities make their neighborhoods and downtown more livable, walkable and centered. The idea is how can we create environments that are more inviting for people to walk.”
Adams said he had toured Houlton’s downtown on a number of occasions with town officials and has come up with a number of options to pursue, including what type of materials to be used and how big of a project the town is willing to undertake.
“We wanted to make sure that we do what the community wants,” Adams said. “There are lots of alternatives, but ultimately the reality is, what we do comes down to the cost. If you do the whole project now, the overall cost is less than if you spread it out over time.”
Adams said he has roughly $2.3 million in funding for projects throughout the state, and every year, there are more projects than there is money to cover. Therefore, the town must convince the state in its application process why Houlton’s project should be considered over other areas.
The application process ends Aug. 31 for the following budget cycle. Because the state operates on a three-year budget cycle, that means, the soonest any sort of funds could be received if Houlton’s project was approved, would be in the spring of 2019.
The town is considering making a change from the brick sidewalk in favor of either concrete pavers, stamped asphalt or standard asphalt. Installing new brick sidewalks is not being considered, Ketch said, because the bricks were found to be too slippery in the winter or when wet.
Chris Stewart, the town’s public works director, stated he would prefer to see the town go with straight asphalt, because it would be easier to maintain. He also added he was against the idea of concrete pavers, because merchants in the downtown are responsible for clearing snow and ice from the sidewalks in front of their businesses and many use salt or other ice-melting chemical mixes, which could eat away at the concrete over time.
Frances Fitzpatrick agreed saying he did not think spending an extra $100,000 to go with stamped asphalt over traditional asphalt was worth the added expense just for aesthetics.
“I understand what people are saying about how [stamped asphalt] looks,” he said. “But I have a problem, seeing the business in the downtown that are just hanging on. We have to throw in $100,000 and that’s not peanuts. We could take that money and do more sidewalks.”
Others in the audience, however, felt that reverting to straight asphalt sidewalks would be taking a major step backwards in terms of the overall aesthetics of the downtown.
“We would be going backwards if we went with straight hot top,” said Jon McLaughlin. “You did a major renovation, saying we wanted the town to look a certain way and this would be going backward.”
“We have to at least be mindful of the fact that the town invested over $2 million to dress the downtown up,” Ketch added. “If there is a way to maintain the appearance at a reasonable cost, we should consider it.”
Adams agreed saying it would be dramatically different from a visual standpoint for the town to go back to straight asphalt throughout the downtown.
The consensus by those in attendance was that the town should explore the stamped asphalt route, since it could be colored to mimic the appearance of brick, while being more stable in the winter. Ketch said she would be finalizing the application in the near future.
