By Lucky Kidd
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Circle C Paving and Construction of Goddard was awarded a nearly $1.48 million contract for the 2024 residential street maintenance projects at Tuesday’s Hutchinson City Council meeting.
Circle C had the lowest of four bids submitted for the project, which was a little over five thousand dollars below the engineer’s estimate and not quite $90,000 above what had been budgeted, the remainder to come from reserve funds.
The 2024 program will involve crack and chip sealing of all residential streets east of K-61.
The city has a rotating schedule for residential street maintenance where all areas will be covered once every eight years, last year’s project including the area bounded by Lorraine, 17th, Plum and just north of Avenue G. The 2025 project will focus on the areas north of 30th and west of Severance, and in 2026 the far southern area of Hutchinson including the downtown area.
Some council members expressed concerns about whether that eight-year cycle is too long. Vice Mayor Stacy Goss, referencing the poor quality of streets in her neighborhood, asked if the current standard is the appropriate expectation for our residents. Goss suggested a heightened role for the public, including a page they could access to see where their neighborhood is on the cycle.
A map outlining the schedule was included in the agenda packet for Tuesday’s meeting. It can be found at www.hutchgov.com and is page 67 of the agenda packet.
