Forget the freeways: neighborhood roads to be upgraded
As if the deluge of work on the Golden State (5) and Ventura (134) freeway corridors won’t give drivers enough to worry about, the city soon will start work on revamping three miles worth of surface streets in West Burbank.
The project, set to begin in May, will resurface portions of six residential streets that were rated as being among the city’s most decrepit. The work will include the reconstruction of curbs, gutters, driveways, sidewalks and pedestrian ramps.
Streets selected for the infrastructure improvements — portions of North Niagara, Rosemary, North Catalina, North Florence, North Naomi and North Brighton streets — are on the city’s backlog of nearly $80 million worth of repairs needed on Burbank streets, said city engineer Sean Corrigan.
“All the streets we’re repairing are rated poor or below,” he said.
A “poor” rating reflects a score of 41 or below on a 100-point scale.
Tom Tyminski, a resident on the 800 block of North Niagara Street, was surprised to hear of the upcoming construction.
“I wouldn’t say they’re top notch, but they’re certainly not the worst I’ve seen,” Tyminski said, although he added that some of the curbs and sidewalks need work due to damage from tree roots.
An exact schedule for the street construction has yet to be finalized, but city officials say there will be little impact on traffic except when the machine passes to grind the existing road surface and when the new asphalt is spread.
“We’re looking forward to improving residential streets, as we have recently focused our energy on larger arterial and secondary streets that have the largest amount of traffic and have higher speeds,” Corrigan said. “Now we’re catching up on some of the backlog.”
The $689,533-project will be completed within one month and will deplete Burbank’s remaining state gasoline tax funds, which pay for the road improvements, for the fiscal year, according to a city report.
The tax revenue, paid by residents when they fill up vehicle gas tanks at the pump and then is distributed back to local governments by the state, is expected to continue trickling down to the city, but the exact amount remains unknown until a budget is signed in Sacramento.
The asphalt that will be used is partially made from recycled rubber tires, which produces a mix that reduces traffic noise and is more durable that regular asphalt, Corrigan said.
INFO BOX (Streets to be repaired):
North Niagara Street between West Chandler Boulevard and West Clark Avenue
Rosemary Street between West Clark Avenue and West Verdugo Avenue
North Catalina Street between West Magnolia Boulevard and West Chandler Boulevard
North Florence Street between West Burbank Boulevard and West Chandler Boulevard and between West Magnolia Boulevard and West Verdugo Boulevard
North Naomi Street between West Magnolia Boulevard and West Verdugo Avenue
North Brighton Street between West Chandler Boulevard and West Magnolia Boulevard