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Several Granite Shoals roads on work list

South Lake Drive in Granite Shoals

South Lake Drive is on the city of Granite Shoals' list of potential street improvements this summer. The city is tapping federal funds to assist with repairs. Staff photo by Jennifer Fierro

The city of Granite Shoals’ plan to improve 2.7 miles of roads has doubled in scope.

“(Two miles) is not enough,” City Manager Jeff Looney said. “There are a lot of roads that have been done by chip sealing, a lot of inner streets off the main streets.”

Officials project the total road work cost at $451,534.83. Looney said the city will pay about $350,000 of that cost and use Federal Emergency Management Agency funding for the rest of it.

Potential streets on the list for improvements include Churchill, Kingswood, Moss Downs, Hillcrest, South Lake, Forest Hills, Valley Way, Shorewood Downs, Clear Cove, and Blue Cove. 

“Streets listed are potential candidates based on final costs being in the available budget,” said Assistant City Manager Peggy Smith.

Looney said the city has received numerous complaints accusing the city of not doing enough to fix roads. He noted that Granite Shoals still has several dirt streets.

“We want to have all of our streets paved,” Looney added.

Some of the roads are chipped sealed, which is basically a layer of liquid asphalt embedded with small rocks. 

This summer, crews will lay compacted asphalt, which might require a 4- to 6-inch base mixture to harden the surface before adding the asphalt.

“(Chip sealing has) been a cheaper way to do (road work),” Looney said. “As a city, we’re doing patchwork. We have to put down a surface that will last longer. There’s more traffic and heavy traffic. If we don’t (use asphalt), we’ll spend our money patching holes.”  

He noted that Churchill and Kingswood are both paved, “but they’re in such bad shape.”

Looney said city staff believe the Granite Shoals street department and Burnet County road and bridge crews can tackle the repair work. Two weeks ago, the City Council approved an interlocal agreement with the county for road work assistance. The county has negotiated a lower price for asphalt, so Granite Shoals leaders hope the city can “piggyback” off of it. 

The project could start in a few weeks with rain out of the forecast and temperatures heating up.

jfierro@thepicayune.com