Voters Asked to OK $15.2 Million Road Bond

The mayor is asking taxpayers to approve a $15.2 million road improvement referendum when they go to the polls on Nov. 5. 

During a press conference in his office Monday with Common Councilwoman Mary Bartolotta and Public Works Director William Russo, Middletown Mayor Dan Drew said the road bond issue is important for the city's infrastructure. 

(See the entire breakdown in this PDF)

"If we don't maintain them, it will cost us more in the long run because we have to reconstruct them at a higher expense and maintaining it will be more difficult and more expensive," Drew said.

Road bonds usually take place every two years during municipal elections, the mayor said, however, the last Middletown road repairs were done in 2009. 

Drew said he's hoping to get repairs back on track, especially since the city's borrowing rate is the lowest it has been in the history of Middletown.

"It's making possible more safe travel in the city, more safe pedestrian access and making sure we care for our infrastructure," Drew said. "It also costs us less to maintain the roads when they are in good shape, it makes them easier to plow, makes it easier to clean them in springtime and we don't have to be constantly be patching them and repairing the curbs."

Russo said public works and city staff were asked to list the roads with the most problem areas. They narrowed roads needing the most urgent care to about 25.5 miles, or roughly one-eighth of the city.

Thirty nine of the secondary roads, Russo said, will get an asphalt rubber surface treatment at a cost of $1 million. "If we had to reconstruction those roads, we'd probably be looking at $20 million. These are the roads in the 8- to 12-year-old range."

These road improvements, Russo said, do not include bicycle lane designs yet. "But we're working toward them, as we're seeing increased bike activity in Middletown, including clubs out of Pedal Power."

This past summer, Russo said, Patterson Drive and Preston Avenue both received this durable coating and the results were satisfactory. 

Another area badly in need of improvement, Bartolotta said, is Saybrook Road near Stop & Shop, which is lacking in sidewalks. Within the past year, she said, there have been a couple accidents — including one fatal — involving pedestrians there.

The councilwoman has also heard complaints from constituents who live or drive their cars in the Long Lane area.

Timber Ridge and Laurel Grove roads were both recently reconstructed, Drew said, with excellent results. 

"Both had been pretty badly worn because they hadn't been repaired in a while and that's the condition to which we'd like to restore them."

In September, the common council also approved the mayor's plan to send a $1.15 million street light expenditure to voters.

Voters Will be Asked to OK $16.3M For Street Lights, Road Repair

The following Middletown streets are slated for improvements:

• Abbey Rd.
• Annette Pl.
• Avondale Ct.
• Barbara Rd.
• Barry Ct.
• Basswood Dr.
• Batt St.
• Benjamin La.
• Birdsey Ave.
• Boston Rd.
• Brechlin Dr.
• Brentwood Ct.
• Briarwood La.
• Broadview Pkwy.
• Brookview La.
• Brown St.
• Carll Rd.
• Cedar St.
• Cimarron Rd.
• Court St.
• Cross St.
• Eagle Hollow Dr.
• Elm St.
• Evergreen Cir.
• Foxtail Rd.
• Franklin St.
• Gibson La.
• Goodyear Ave.
• Greenlawn Rd.
• Greenview Terr.
• Hampton La.
• Hawks Nest Circle
• Highland Ave.
• Highview Terr.
• Horseshoe La.
• Hotchkiss St.
• Hubbard St.
• Industrial Park Rd.
• Knox Blvd
• Lancaster Ct.
• Ledgebrook La.
• Liberty St.
• Linbert St.
• Lindsey Rd.
• Long Ln. 
• Loveland St.
• Lucinda Ln.
• Main Street Extension Bridge Design
• Markham St.
• Meadowood Dr.
• Meadowood Ln.
• Middle St.
• Millbrook Rd.
• Mohawk Dr.
• Morning Glory Dr.
• Mulberry La.
• Nathan Hale Rd.
• Navadon Pkwy
• Newberry Way
• North Fowler Ave.
• Northview Dr.
• Oak Ridge Dr.
• Pamecha Ave.
• Pearl St.
• Peck Rd.
• Phedon Pkwy
• Pine St.
• Plumb Rd.
• Plymouth St.
• Pond Pl.
• Portland St.
• Primrose Ln.
• Putter Pl.
• Ridge Rd.
• River Road Bridge Design
• Rogers Rd.
• Rolling Green
• Rose Cir.
• Round Hill Rd.
• Ryan St.
• Sandtrap La.
• Saybrook Road Sidewalks
• Schaefer Rd.
• Shady Hill La.
• Shirley’s Ct.
• Smith St.
• Snow Ridge North
• Snow Ridge South
• Spencer Dr.
• Spring Brook Dr.
• Stable La.
• Stoneycrest Dr.
• Tavern Cir.
• Timothy Dr.
• Valley Dr.
• Wall St.
• West Wynd Terr.
• Westfield St.
• Whitney Ct.
• Wildflower La.
• York Rd.