Council discusses alley paving

Weirton City Council and Public Works Director John Brown discussed the possibility of paving more alleys during a workshop Friday.

Mayor Mark Harris asked Brown what resources would be needed to use Public Works employees to pave alleys throughout the year. According to Brown, he would require seven full time employees to pave an alley, as well as possibly two part time workers to act as flaggers.

"There would need to be three operators," he said. "I'd need two on the paver and one and the roller."

In his report, Brown informed council it would save an estimated $3 per yard using Public Works employees over contracting the job out. He added he did not believe the alleys would need milled either. Because of the manpower required, however, Brown stated adding an additional paving schedule for his workers to complete would either require overtime pay, or hinder his department's ability to perform other jobs throughout the city.

Ward 7 Councilman Max Fijewski asked if there was a method by which his crew could both pave alleys and complete its regularly scheduled duties.

Harris suggested dedicating one day a week toward paving an alley in the city.

"We could do this during regular business hours and save on the overtime," he said.

Brown informed council his workers could complete one alley per day, though this expense was not in his current budget. He noted council approved his budget for the patching and paving of a set list of streets and an additional amount would be required to begin alley paving.

Council asked Brown to put together a program which would detail the possible costs and schedules from paving one alley per week. At his request, council members agreed to provide Brown with a prioritized list of alleys to be paved in their individual wards.

(Rossi can be contacted at grossi@weirtondailytimes.com)