By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
It's one of the few times the city of Hays has received at least two bids on each of its projects in the annual street maintenance program.
Public Works Director Jesse Rohr is "very pleased" with the bids from 10 contractors for the six project areas in 2023.
City commissioners unanimously approved the recommended low bids during their meeting last week. The total is $1,415,968 which will be funded from the special highway budget.
A seventh project, reconstruction of the Aubel-Bickle Park parking lot, will also be done this year. The cost is $79,795 from the special parks fund.
The selection of work is decided by several factors, Rohr explained to the commission.
"Each year, [public works] staff evaluates the condition of city streets and we develop a maintenance program brought forward to the city commission for your consideration.
"We utilize different tools, such as traffic counts, pavement condition assessments, past maintenance treatments, public input, and our available budget," Rohr said.
The primary major rehab project for 2023 is reconstruction of Fort Street from 27th to 29th. Two additional projects are MacArthur from 20th to 22nd and General Hays from Cody to Downing.
Starting about 15 years ago, the city commission decided to dedicate about $1 million a year to street maintenance. Prior to that, less than $200,000 would be spent annually for street improvements, according to Toby Dougherty, Hays city manager.
"That's our job," Commissioner Sandy Jacobs said Friday in an interview on KAYS Radio. "Infrastructure and safety. That's what we're all about.
"You drive in Hays and you just expect the streets to be this way. You get in another community and you wonder, what are they doing with their tax dollars? We have really good streets."
The money Hays uses for street maintenance comes from several sources including gasoline taxes collected and distributed by the state, an allotment from the Kansas Department of Transportation, and cash transferred in from the city general fund.