RAVELING? RUTTING? DEBONDING?
Council President Robert Seelie called the October 17, 2005 meeting to order.
St. Hedwig Church was the next in line of many Lakewood churches celebrating its 100th Anniversary. A resolution introduced by council member Mary Louise Madigan (ward 4) and signed by Mayor Thomas George recognized this milestone.
The administration then brought forward an emergency ordinance to change the assignment of the cable television franchise from Adelphia to Time Warner.
A small corner of the Gold Coast is served by the same cable company that has the City of Cleveland franchise, Adelphia in this case. Adelphia had been in financial trouble for several years and declared bankruptcy. Its assets were for sale and Time Warner bought the Cleveland franchise. Such a purchase includes all existing contracts with current subscribers, meaning no programming changes. As the Time Warner representative put it-different names on the work shirts and trucks, everything else remains the same until the next regular franchise negotiations.
Therefore, it was with some incredulity that the administration listened to over 20 minutes of questions from council member Edward Fitzgerald (at-large) and Madigan, in whose ward are the affected subscribers. The issue finally passed with Denis Dunn (at-large) abstaining because he is employed by SBC Communications, a potential competitor of Time Warner.
Council observers might recall that at the end of budget hearings in January of this year, a final selection of streets to be repaved had to be made. Although the streets department had an existing list of streets and their condition, a choice had to be made.
Council members Michael Dever (at-large) and Patrick Corrigan (ward 1) selflessly risked their seats (anatomically speaking) and hopped in Corrigan's car for a final "seat of the pants" inspection and selection. While their heroics were to be admired, this was hardly a scientific method for selecting streets for repairs.
Thus, the administration is instituting a much more precise method of ranking streets according to condition. Mayor Thomas George asked the new City Engineer, Dennis Albrecht, to describe this process.
In his first remark he stated his goal was that Lakewood citizens would "not notice the infrastructure" meaning of course that things worked.
In "Corridor Conversations" (an exclusive Lakewood Observer feature) Albrecht described the Pavement Condition Rating System.
This is a comprehensive method developed by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) which uses 14 criteria for asphalt surfaces and12 criteria for concrete pavement in evaluating pavement condition. Each criterion is weighted to reflect its importance in an evaluation, including serious conditions such as raveling (actual breakdown of the asphalt ingredients), debonding (general surface deterioration) and rutting.
Objective methods of measuring these and other conditions are used. These methods are learned through training sessions provided by ODOT. The Lakewood Engineering Dept. had classroom and field training last week.
The final result is a condition rating based on a scale of 100. This is a much more precise method of evaluation than had been used in the past. Albrecht indicates that Lakewood is one of only a few cities in Ohio that has started to use the PCR procedures.
Returning to the council presentation, Albrecht outlined the cost of this effort. His familiarity with ODOT programs enabled the city to obtain free training from them. A private engineering firm is being hired at the cost of $50,000 to do a PCR of all the streets in Lakewood. Thomas Jordan, Director of Planning, is in charge of the Community Development Block Grant Program which finances many street repair projects. However, this financing generally can only be used in targeted areas. Jordan presented an argument to officials in Chicago which persuaded them to allow the CDBG funds to study all of Lakewood's streets. So, with free training from ODOT, financing from CDGB, and two expert directors in funding, this superior street study will be conducted at no cost to Lakewood.
In additional corridor comments, Mayor George indicated that Albrecht presented very impressive credentials out of many qualified candidates for the position of City Engineer.
Finally, at the end of the meeting, several residents of the Mayfair Apartment Building in the West End neighborhood presented council with petitions complaining about noise and rowdiness from nearby bars. The prime offender seemed to be The Hairy Buffalo.
The noise complaints referred specifically to loud music which could be heard through newly installed open patio windows. Also, the nature of songs' lyrics was a source of great concern. Residents of the building said that sleep was impossible and in some cases the lack of sleep jeopardized their job performance and their children's' school day performance.
The competing demands of the bars and the residents will continue to demand the efforts of the police department and all affected parties to find a resolution.
Reported by Stan Austin, Lakewood Observer City Council Reporter
St. Hedwig Church was the next in line of many Lakewood churches celebrating its 100th Anniversary. A resolution introduced by council member Mary Louise Madigan (ward 4) and signed by Mayor Thomas George recognized this milestone.
The administration then brought forward an emergency ordinance to change the assignment of the cable television franchise from Adelphia to Time Warner.
A small corner of the Gold Coast is served by the same cable company that has the City of Cleveland franchise, Adelphia in this case. Adelphia had been in financial trouble for several years and declared bankruptcy. Its assets were for sale and Time Warner bought the Cleveland franchise. Such a purchase includes all existing contracts with current subscribers, meaning no programming changes. As the Time Warner representative put it-different names on the work shirts and trucks, everything else remains the same until the next regular franchise negotiations.
Therefore, it was with some incredulity that the administration listened to over 20 minutes of questions from council member Edward Fitzgerald (at-large) and Madigan, in whose ward are the affected subscribers. The issue finally passed with Denis Dunn (at-large) abstaining because he is employed by SBC Communications, a potential competitor of Time Warner.
Council observers might recall that at the end of budget hearings in January of this year, a final selection of streets to be repaved had to be made. Although the streets department had an existing list of streets and their condition, a choice had to be made.
Council members Michael Dever (at-large) and Patrick Corrigan (ward 1) selflessly risked their seats (anatomically speaking) and hopped in Corrigan's car for a final "seat of the pants" inspection and selection. While their heroics were to be admired, this was hardly a scientific method for selecting streets for repairs.
Thus, the administration is instituting a much more precise method of ranking streets according to condition. Mayor Thomas George asked the new City Engineer, Dennis Albrecht, to describe this process.
In his first remark he stated his goal was that Lakewood citizens would "not notice the infrastructure" meaning of course that things worked.
In "Corridor Conversations" (an exclusive Lakewood Observer feature) Albrecht described the Pavement Condition Rating System.
This is a comprehensive method developed by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) which uses 14 criteria for asphalt surfaces and12 criteria for concrete pavement in evaluating pavement condition. Each criterion is weighted to reflect its importance in an evaluation, including serious conditions such as raveling (actual breakdown of the asphalt ingredients), debonding (general surface deterioration) and rutting.
Objective methods of measuring these and other conditions are used. These methods are learned through training sessions provided by ODOT. The Lakewood Engineering Dept. had classroom and field training last week.
The final result is a condition rating based on a scale of 100. This is a much more precise method of evaluation than had been used in the past. Albrecht indicates that Lakewood is one of only a few cities in Ohio that has started to use the PCR procedures.
Returning to the council presentation, Albrecht outlined the cost of this effort. His familiarity with ODOT programs enabled the city to obtain free training from them. A private engineering firm is being hired at the cost of $50,000 to do a PCR of all the streets in Lakewood. Thomas Jordan, Director of Planning, is in charge of the Community Development Block Grant Program which finances many street repair projects. However, this financing generally can only be used in targeted areas. Jordan presented an argument to officials in Chicago which persuaded them to allow the CDBG funds to study all of Lakewood's streets. So, with free training from ODOT, financing from CDGB, and two expert directors in funding, this superior street study will be conducted at no cost to Lakewood.
In additional corridor comments, Mayor George indicated that Albrecht presented very impressive credentials out of many qualified candidates for the position of City Engineer.
Finally, at the end of the meeting, several residents of the Mayfair Apartment Building in the West End neighborhood presented council with petitions complaining about noise and rowdiness from nearby bars. The prime offender seemed to be The Hairy Buffalo.
The noise complaints referred specifically to loud music which could be heard through newly installed open patio windows. Also, the nature of songs' lyrics was a source of great concern. Residents of the building said that sleep was impossible and in some cases the lack of sleep jeopardized their job performance and their children's' school day performance.
The competing demands of the bars and the residents will continue to demand the efforts of the police department and all affected parties to find a resolution.
Reported by Stan Austin, Lakewood Observer City Council Reporter
Volume 1, Issue 10, Posted 01.49 PM / 30th October 2005.