Bishop sworn in, pushes but doesn't vote for Sappington resurfacing project
By August Kryger
After the pre-election business finished, and the election results were certified, Barbara Bishop was sworn in to the Ashland board of aldermen.
She wasted no time bringing up her concern about getting repairs done to Sappington Drive, a road just off South Main Street. Though Bishop had been a vocal supporter of the Sappington repair, and brought it up for discussion before the board, she was the only board member who voted against it.
Bishop said her reason for voting against repairing Sappington was that she didn't feel comfortable not having a specific bid from the contractor.
"I didn't agree that we should set a dollar limit before we knew the costs," Bishop said.
Public works director John Fraga gave aldermen a rough estimate of how much it would cost to get a 1-inch overlay put on the road.
Bishop said she wanted official numbers before she could agree to the city getting it done. She said the original estimates of $50,000 seemed too far from the one Fraga gave Tuesday night.
Fraga said the overlay would cost around $10,000, if agreed to by the contractor working on current city road improvement projects. In light of this, aldermen made a motion to add the money to provide a one-inch overlay on Sappington.
City Administrator Ken Eftink said the original plan for repair had a higher cost because it was more comprehensive.
"I know there was some concern about the estimate we had in the capital improvement program," Eftink said. "The difference is the project we're looking at here is just a one-inch overlay whereas the one in the capital improvement program included some other improvements to Sappington."
After some calculations, Fraga told the board that the project could possibly be added to existing repairs that are scheduled for Broadway, North Henry Clay Boulevard, College and Ash streets.
The purpose of aldermen agreeing on Fraga's recommended amount was to give the opportunity of repair this year, without going far beyond available funds.
"That way if it comes in as 50 (thousand dollars), it's a no-go and Sappington would have to wait another year," Ashland mayor Mike Asmus said.
Despite Bishop's no vote, the motion passed with the majority.
Eftink said the contractor working on the other road projects is going to fix Sappington for a price "in the $12,000 to $13,000 range."
"By downsizing the scope of the project it made it affordable," Eftink said.
Other items passed at the meeting: