Midtown roads see first dose of spring construction
Reporter: Aaron Brackett
TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - When winter abandons southern Arizona, the traffic cones move in, and a midtown neighborhood is one of the first neighborhoods slated for repairs. While repairs that may seem minor to many-- they're a big pain for drivers who use these roads everyday.
One of the streets in near Pima and Dodge in Tucson had cracks and uneven pavement fill the lanes, something residents are fed up with.
Danielle Dion lives on Dodge Blvd. and says her 1971 Beetle takes a pounding.
" I have an older vehicle, so it was really damaging to my vehicle, and its dangerous because you are trying to swerve around potholes," said Dion.
According to Michael Graham of the City of Tucson, streets around Catalina Magnet High School in Midtown, and Pueblo Gardens Elementary on the south side are getting a new surface, but the fix is temporary with a life span of about 3-5 years.
Benna Henderson has lived in her home for 19 years, and welcomes the construction. "I think its great because they are repairing so many other places in Tucson, that to be in Midtown and have that happen is really nice," said Henderson.
The process involves spraying a sticky asphalt "glue", then adding special rocks to the surface but some of them will inevitably loosen as the road sets. Nearby resident Steven Cicco is happy his road is getting attention, but doesn't like the chip repair method.
"It does a lot of damage to your vehicles, tires and whatnot," said Cicco. "I don't know if they are going to finish it or not. Half of these roads around here aren't finished anyway; they just do this and then that's it."
According to Graham, the money for this project comes from refinanced HURF debt and the city's general fund -- and more extensive repairs will begin this summer from funds of voter approved Proposition 409. The Chip repairs can be done to extend the life of roads graded as "fair" while more extensive repaving is scheduled for roads that are in worse condition.
Click here to see a map of scheduled road repairs around Tucson.
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