Wright City is planning for what projects its public works crew can accomplish over the coming months while major projects are sidetracked by COVID-19 concerns.
Public works officials told the …
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Wright City is planning for what projects its public works crew can accomplish over the coming months while major projects are sidetracked by COVID-19 concerns.
Public works officials told the Wright City Board of Aldermen April 23 that the city’s small crew has been patching potholes and ruts around town, and is making plans to replace concrete slabs and sidewalks along various streets. Crews also plan to install new concrete pads at the Wright City police department and replace a section of asphalt at the city cemetery.
Wright City Administrator Jim Schuchmann said staff are currently assessing which sections of city streets are priorities for full slab replacements. They also need to determine which jobs can be handled by the four full-time public works staff with some part-time help, and which projects will need to go to a contractor.
“We’re looking at the Falcons Crest subdivision because it’s pretty much built out, and there’s several spots in there where slabs need to be replaced,” Schuchmann commented, adding that other slabs around the city could be replaced as well.
Sidewalks in the Trotters Point, Trotters Creek and Auburn Meadows subdivisions are also on the to-do list to make sure they’re safe and ADA compliant, Schuchmann said.
Another important public works project will be clearing stormwater ditches along city roads that have filled in with silt.
“When we get a heavy rain, the ditches are not adequately handling it, and water is getting on the road,” Shuchmann said. A section along Bell Road is one of the main examples of this, he said.
Several major street projects that were identified earlier this year have been delayed due to issues surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak, Schuchmann said.
For example, Wright City plans to repave a section of Westwoods Road from the North Service Road to Indian Head Lodge Road. The project has all the engineering done, and the city was in the process of acquiring easements when the statewide stay-at-home order went into effect, Schuchmann said. That has set back the project.
A sidewalk replacement along the North Service Road in front of United Church of Christ is in the same situation, he said. Schuchmann hopes that can eventually be contracted out as one project with the Westwoods construction.
Another project the city will try to do this year is crack sealing on city streets. Schuchmann said that could also be contracted out due to the need for specialty equipment.
