Raising dust: A car traveling along Bartlett Street stirs up a cloud of dust as it approaches 39th Street. The city has taken some preliminary steps to make improvements on the street under the current street budget. Utility poles along the street will be moved to allow the street to be widened and straightened at some locations. FEMA funds will be used to replace a culvert that was washed out during floods last year. Bartlett has been included in the road program approved by voters in last Tuesday’s election.
Bethany residents probably will have to wait until next year to see major street improvements resulting from last Tuesday’s approval of a half-cent sales tax in the municipal election.
Bethany voters had already approved a $3.4 million bond issue for streets in the November election but rejected the sales tax in that election. The missing piece was added when voters approved the tax by a narrow 252-223 margin.
The sales tax won’t go into effect until October and revenue will not come in until later in the fall, according to Mayor Patrick Miller. When the road program goes into full motion, the city will be able to more than double the number of miles of roadways that it repaves each year.
The city contacted its bond attorneys, Gilmore & Bell, after the sales tax was approved last Tuesday. The city plans to sell the bonds through Edward Jones.
“We want to wait to sell the bonds to make sure that the time is right for the best rates,” Miller said.
While waiting for the new street program to kick in, the city will be taking immediate steps to improve the maintenance of existing streets. The city will be getting demonstrations from area contractors of the latest equipment to seal cracks in road surfaces. The system, which is used by MoDOT, involves a trailer that applies thick asphalt in cracks to preserve the streets. The equipment already was approved under the city’s current street budget.
The city has also has begun preliminary work on improving Bartlett Street from 39th Street to the park entrance. The city has marked the relocation of utility poles to permit the street to be widened to accommodate the increased traffic on the road.
The city plans to follow the same priority list for street improvements that was presented to voters before the November election, Miller said. That list was devised based upon a rating system assigned to each area that determined the condition of the streets.
The streets were rated from 1-5 with the lowest number signifying streets in poor condition.
The following priority list will be followed under the road program:
•Daily and Broyles additions in northeast Bethany. Average rating, 2.125.
•Beekman, Monson, Dock, Miller, north of fairgrounds. Average rating, 2.5625.
•Crestview, Countryside, Ranchwood, Timothy, near the elementary school. Average rating, 2.5.
•Bella Vista, Pinecrest, Lakeview, Lorraine, Hub Club, Hubbard, Vandivert, Woodruff, Beekman, west of Crestview. Average rating, 2.5714.
•Beekman to Main, Railroad, Miller, Lewis, Crossan, Newburn, Fuller, Main to Central, southwest of courthouse. Average rating, 2.8571.
•Wyvonne, South Street, Railroad, 9th Street, Beekman, Hendren, Garland, Maple, Vandivert, south of fairgrounds. Average rating 3.06215.
•Twelfth Street from South to Main, 14th Street from Hubbard to Beekman, Nall, Wilson, Beekman, Miller, Woodruff, south of elementary school. Average rating, 3.2.
•Allen Avenue, Willard, Childress, 22nd Street, 18th, 19th, Home, 41st Street, Miller to Bulldog, Roleke, Airport Road, northeast of City Hall and east of I-35. Average rating, 3.4.
lNewburn, Independence to Oakland, Grand, Bartlett, near Memorial Park. Average rating 3.7333.
•Thirty-ninth Street completion, Bartlett to Bulldog, North TIF District, 30th Street to 38th Street/ South TIF District. No rating was available.
The TIF District infrastructure projects will be paid for by taxes generated by the businesses along the route.