photo by: File Photo

WHEELING — About $1 million worth of street paving work is expected to take place throughout Wheeling before the end of this fiscal year, but city leaders will need to trim down a prioritized list of eligible streets in order to get the project within budget.

In recent years, the previous city council has approved a significant amount of funds for sizable resurfacing contracts that have even extended into alleys that have remained untouched for years. The paving contract during the 2022-23 fiscal year was deemed the biggest single resurfacing contract in the history of the city. That $1.85 million project was funded in part by federal pandemic relief money.

The current list of streets targeted for the 2024-25 fiscal year paving cycle and the costs associated with resurfacing them is expected to be distributed to members of Wheeling City Council within the next week or so for their review. With pandemic money pretty much tapped out for Wheeling, city leaders are expected to revert back to more traditional means of funding street paving projects.

General fund money and a portion of annual grant allocations for low-to-moderate-income neighborhoods from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development are expected to be utilized for paving projects this year.

“This year, council has budgeted $800,000 in general funds for paving as well as $250,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds,” Wheeling City Manager Robert Herron said, noting that the city’s preliminary list of streets eyed for resurfacing this season would be estimated to cost between $2.5 and $2.9 million if the entire list was tackled. “We are going to pare that down to a recommended level which would be at the $1 million mark. Once that’s done, we will distribute that to city council along with all of the other streets so you can take a look at that and offer any comments or recommendations you may have.”

Even though several alleys have been part of the last two city paving projects, there are more to be done.

“Streets and alleys will be included in the upcoming project,” Herron said. “Both are prioritized by current condition and usage (level of travel).”

City staff will review the overall list and use this criteria to trim it down to a project that can be accomplished within budget.

“Keep in mind that the list is extensive for planning purposes, and not all of the streets on the list are in need of paving at the moment,” Herron noted. “Each ward city council person is consulted on the streets in their ward, and the process ends up being a collaborative effort amongst the city council as whole, along with city staff input. The plan now is to have the list finalized by Feb. 12.”

Herron said the goal is to have bids released at that date with proposals from contractors due on March 12. Legislation based on the bids would be put up for council consideration for a first reading on March 18, and then a second reading and final vote on April 1.

“Typically it takes about 30 days for the contractor to get all of their documentation together – performance bonds, Workers Comp, etc.” Herron explained. “So we’re anticipating beginning the contract on May 1 with a 60-day contract period.”