City Repairing Alleys and Sidewalks

New Surface Smooths Out Rough Alley

The alleyway west and behind the 100 block of South Main Street was like a free rollercoaster ride before it was recently paved over.  Although the alleys behind most of the Main Street businesses in town are used by employees or store owners heading for a parking space, they can still be a rough ride when unattended for a number of years. 

That’s starting to change, according to Lamar Public Works Director, Pat Mason.  “We have some plans to continue to work on the downtown alleys and some of them may receive a total overlay and some may just be patched, according to their needs,” he explained.  Mason said the city is starting with the worst, first and the one recently fixed was in dire need of improvements.  “It usually takes a crew about a day and a half to do that level of work, from cleaning and preparing it, to moving in with the asphalt coating,” Mason said.  Most of the project will run between Oak and Beech Streets as the season runs from summer into the fall. 

Mason said following a sidewalk repair project in the 100 Block of North Main Street, City Administrator John Sutherland said the city should, at least for pedestrian safety issues, look at other areas where storefront sidewalks could be an issue.  City Councilman, Skip Ruedeman, volunteered to join Mason in a survey of the city sidewalks between Pizza Hut and the municipal complex to get a needs assessment for future projects.  The pair took about two hours to complete their survey.  “We had an issue where the heat recently bucked the sidewalk near Pizza Hut and we leveled that out by about one and a half inches,” Mason said.  He and Ruedeman noted about a dozen other areas where there could be problems.  The city reached an agreement with storeowners where they pay for materials and the city provides equipment and labor for the repairs.  “We’ve been approached by a couple of business owners about a repair project,” Mason stated that there has been some good feedback on the citywide project.  “We’ll be working into the fall on this as well and we’re prioritizing those areas that show the most need,” he explained.

By Russ Baldwin