Road Work Bus Tour Shows Council Existing Projects, Proposed Repairs

Members of Stow City Council hopped a bus this week to tour the city's road projects planned for 2013, repairs already under way and proposed upgrades for 2014.

Council toured 18 different points of interest that ranged from paving repairs and sidewalk upgrades to street work proposed for next year.

Nick Wren, Stow's service director, said the tour included the nearly finished upgrades to Hudson Drive and Commerce Drive.

"Really, to us no one area is more important than another," Wren said.

The tour included:

2013 Proposed Street Projects

• Renee Estates, last resurfaced in 2000, includes $250,00 for resurfacing, $40,000 for repairs and $39,000 for curb work
• Independence Place, includes $143,000 for resurfacing
• Emerald Woods, the second-oldest wearing road surface in the city, includes $74,000 for resurfacing
• Hudson Drive south, includes $15,000 for full and partial depth repairs
• Englewood Drive, Rose Avenue and Kay Drive, includes $150,000 for repaving, $30,000 for repairs and $34,000 cor curb work
• Northview Drive and Mohican Road, includes $173,917 in work fully covered by a federal grant

2013 Existing Street Projects

• Crestdale Estates, included $326,000 in resurfacing and $70,000 in concrete repairs
• Stow Road, a $496,000 total project
• Norton Road, includes $668,000 in repairs to start in June
• Terrace Glen, included $39,000 in repairs
• Call Road, included $192,000 Safe Routes to School work
• Commerce Drive, included $302,000 in repairs
• Hudson Drive, included $247,000 in repairs
• Graham Road Widening Project

2014 Proposed Street Projects

• Hibbard and Clearbrook Drives, $132,000 in proposed resurfacing work
• McCauley Road, $143,000 in proposed resurfacing work

Stow Councilman Mike Rasor said the bus tour by council was held once before several years ago.

"It's good for city council to have an understanding of what our roads crews do, because we deal with road issues and complaints so regularly," Rasor said. "I hoped that, in seeing some of our worst-maintained roads, my colleagues will come to agree with me that this situation is worth their attention. As we drove around town, I hope they appreciated how badly some neighborhood roads need fixed."