Victoria MN Newspaper

FIXING KOCHIA & 78TH. CONTINUED.

"This project was originally programmed for 2014," said Cara. "I've met with the neighbors and the school district. Both roads are part of the state aid system so we can use our gas tax money for the improvements. A state aid road connects on either end to a highway or county road, so we need to meet state aid standards. I'd be recommending the same standards."

Cara said she is also recommending a 8 and 1/2-foot wide trail along the north side of 78th street and along the east side of Kochia Lane, as well as stormsewer. The roads will be 26 feet wide.

"But I am not recommending making the Kochia Lane connection to Holy Family Catholic High School," she added. "We would need to acquire significant easements for that and it would be an expensive project."

"A stormwater pond will probably be constructed on the undeveloped Lano-Burau property, so I'm not recommending construction until the summer of 2015," said Cara. She said she held one meeting with the neighbors and one with the school.

"The neighborhood meeting was fairly well attended," she said. "They did not give me any feedback. Nobody expressed support or opposition. Most of those to be assessed were at the meeting."

Asked about other state aid roads in Victoria, Cara mentioned Stieger Lake Lane and, forthcoming, Marsh Lake Road. State aid funds were used on 86th Street and Smithtown Road. Annually the City of Victoria receives maybe $200,000 in state aid funds.

EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW

ABOUT STREETS IN VICTORIA

Council held a 5 p.m. workshop on Monday evening April 14th to talk about streets and snowplowing in Victoria. City Attorney Cara Geheren presented historical and current information on policies and conditions of the city's streets. Public Works Director Ann Mahnke presented information on operations and factors related to snowplowing in the city.

STREET CONSTRUCTION

"This is my favorite subject," said Cara, perhaps facetiously. "The life expectancy of a street is dependent on quality of construction and how you take care of it. You can't deal with one without the other. Now we build nine ton roads, which can handle garbage trucks better. I would prefer there be single haulers in a neighborhood, but people feel very passionate about their haulers. I find it fascinating."

"Below the bituminous paved surface we have a base of Class 5 Aggregate, a subbase of sand, and the existing soil which is primarily clay. We've learned that roads without a sand layer don't hold up. Woodstone Drive was done before the standards changed. It didn't have sand and it didn't hold up. Its condition was horrible."

The subgrade in Victoria is generally heavy clay soils, she said.

"New streets in Victoria get 24 inches of sand. The city spent many years studying this for the right solution. It didn't happen overnight. The secret is draintile." She explained that the city now installs both sand and a draintile that takes water away so the streets are not so subject to the ramification of freezing and thawing.

Cara presented a "Pavement Performance Curve" that displayed how long a new street can last with proper scheduled maintenance. With routine sealcoatings and overlays, a street can last for 65 years before needing reconstruction, she said. An overlay, a new surface, is 25% of the cost of a total reconstruction.

She gave examples of preventative street maintenance such as crack sealing and seal coating ("primarily we do these two in Victoria") and also fog sealing ("another kind of seal coating"), rut filling, thin overlays, and microsurfacing.

Said Cara, "You want to find the right repair on the right road at the right time."

She provided the historical background on Victoria streets. In the 1990's, studies were conducted to evaluate reconstruction of failing streets. In the late 1990's, city street standardS for new construction changed to include sand section and draintile.

Said Cara, "In 2001 I started working for the city and did multiple workshops with the council and looked at the assessment policy."

In 2002-2003, standards for street reconstruction were re-evaluated along with the assessment policy. In 2003 an updated assessment policy was adopted. In 2004, the 50/50 policy was adopted, whereby the city picks up 50% of street reconstruction and benefitting property pay 50%. Sanitary sewer and municipal water is 100% assessed.

City streets are reconstructed 24 feet wide rather than 26 feet.

She said that 2004 was the first year of major street improvements in Victoria, and in 2005 came up with a long term plan for the city for $17 million in improvements. Also in 2005, councilmembers committed to spend $2 million annually on street improvements through the city. Annual improvements were made in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. No street improvements were made in 2012 because of the Hwy 5 closure. In 2012 Aster Trail and Aster Circle were constructed.

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