Each year the Village of Burns Lake has a budget of $160,000 to be spend on a paving project.
According to the village’s original plan, the next street section in line to be paved would be Fourth Avenue - from Centre Street to Kinette Park. However, earlier this year council indicated they would like to re-examine the plan, as Fourth Avenue is not a highly used roadway.
Village staff then suggested that council wait until after the spring thaw to make a final decision.
“I would request to reassess after the spring thaw to see what is the best location for pavement at that time because I think [the conditions of] streets change all the time, and there might be a worse section within the town that needs more attention,” said director of public works Dale Ross earlier this year.
The street segments suggested to be repaved this summer are Fifth Avenue - from Hwy. 16 to Centre Street, and the bottom portion of Centre Street - between Home Hardware and Second Avenue.
Village staff say both of these streets are well travelled, and both are in need of repair.
“The Centre Street portion has deteriorated and should be addressed,” said Ross. “The remaining funds provided an opportunity to repave the first segment of Fifth Avenue in its entirety from Hwy. 16 to Centre Street.”
The Fifth Avenue segment is expected to cost approximately $105,000 while the Centre Street segment is expected to cost about $52,000.
Ross says these estimates were based on the square or linear meters of both streets in question and the values were determined using an up-to-date cost estimate list. However, after the successful paving contractor is chosen, these numbers could fluctuate plus or minus.
Ross staff added that due to the aging water lines within the village, there will always be the risk of having failures after paving due to the compaction process.
Council is expected to make a decision on which roads to pave at tonight’s council meeting.