It may surprise many to learn that there are 774 public streets stretching approximately 245 miles throughout the 28 square miles that constitute the city of Mentor. That’s a lot to take care of.
Depending on the traffic and other conditions, the average city street lasts about 12 years before it needs to be resurfaced. So how does the city decide which street needs to be repaired and when? We reached out to the Engineering department to find out.
How do you decide which streets get repaired each year?
Mentor streets are evaluated every other year based on a standard evaluation formula developed by ODOT. A pavement condition rating is assigned to each street based on that formula. Each year, streets in two of Mentor’s four wards are evaluated. Streets are then prioritized based on these ratings, as well as available funding, so that street repairs are equally divided between all four wards.
How many streets does the city repair each year?
The number of city streets that are repaired or resurfaced each year is determined by the annual budget. Typically, it’s about 30 streets per year but that may vary due to fluctuations in cost for asphalt and concrete. In 2022, a total of 33 streets were addressed as a part of the program. This does not take into account streets where outside (grant) funding has been secured, such as the Headlands Area Road Rehabilitation program or the recent Market Street project.
Why does it seem like all of these projects start at the same time?
Streets that are repaired as a part of our annual Road Repair Program are bid as a single project. Although it is performed at multiple locations throughout the city, the project is a single contract which requires work on all streets to be performed around the same time frame.
Why can’t you do this work at night?
A variety of factors can affect project scheduling. Proximity of projects to nearby residences usually keeps the City from requiring night work due to noise and worker safety concerns. In many instances, even with night work, traffic impacts during construction would still significantly impact daytime traffic flow.
Why do some of these jobs start when summer is almost over?
Projects that receive state or federal funding are dependent upon the approval of the state budget. The budget is usually approved right before the beginning of the state fiscal year on July 1st. For this reason, certain projects cannot be awarded until July, resulting in the late summer project start. Projects being funded completely with City funding are usually bid early in the year to allow for spring construction.
Why do some street surfaces consist of concrete and some consist of asphalt?
Many of the residential streets within Mentor were constructed by developers. Factors such as soil conditions and project budget determined the preferred construction method. Mentor code permits both asphalt and concrete roadway surfaces to be utilized for roadways.
A road crew milled my street and it’s been sitting like this. Why can’t they repave it right away?
As part of the Road Repair Program, contracts are awarded for multiple streets within Mentor. The usual process for completing the work involves the milling of the street, followed by full depth asphalt repairs, and finally the overlay of the street. The contractor performing the work typically performs all work within each phase before moving on to the next phase of construction. This results in a gap in the time from when a street is milled until the final surface is placed.
The city just repaved a street. Now I see them cutting into it again. Why?
After a street has been resurfaced, there are sometimes unforeseen underground utility conditions that require an open cut of the street. These are typically performed by the various public and private utility companies.
Of course, this just covers major repairs and resurfacing. To report potholes or other minor repairs, please notify the Public Works department at pubworks@cityofmentor.com or (440) 974-8781.
If you have questions, contact the Engineering Department at building@cityofmentor.com.