BRADENTON BEACH – Avenue C residents should see drainage projects completed before summer, according to city officials.
City commissioners have approved Westra Construction’s request to extend its contract with the city by an additional 90 days. The contract is for the city-funded drainage improvements and driveway restorations taking place along Avenue C.
The new, city-funded infiltration trenches are covered with polymer, honeycombed, geogrid soil reinforcement panels and topped with 89 stone, grass, sod or some other surface material.
This is a new approach for the city of Bradenton Beach and a deviation from the past practice of topping the drainage trenches with white, lime rock 57 stone.
City Engineer Lynn Burnett said Westra requested the contract extension to help ensure the best possible transition and connection between Avenue C and the Lay-Z Liv-N condominium complex parking lot.
The county-funded Avenue C paving will complete that section of the county’s force main replacement project.
“In order to have the best finish and tightest lay-in of the geo-grid pavers in between the Lay-Z Liv-N driveway and the asphalt, they would like to do the asphalt overlay, let it cure for 30 days, then come in and saw-cut it once it’s cured, lay the pavers and that way it will be a nice clean joint and cut,” Burnett told the city commission on March 21.
Burnett said the county-funded final resurfacing of Avenue C will happen after the county does its final testing and inspection of the force main replacement project.
“I’m happy with the work and the progress that they’ve made. Hopefully, we’ll be wrapping this up in the next few weeks and couple of months,” Burnett said.
Westra is doing the city drainage and county force main projects as two separate but congruent projects.
Mayor John Chappie said he’s been impressed by the results he’s already seen when driving down Avenue C after it rains. He said the rainwater is draining off faster than it did before.
Intersection wrap-arounds
Burnett said she thinks the commission’s previous request for the city-funded drainage improvements to wrap around the Avenue C intersections can be accomplished at no additional cost.
“I just hope it fixes that ponding that’s been there for years and years. That would make people happy,” Commissioner Ralph Cole said of the drainage improvements.
Commissioner Jake Spooner asked if the geogrid will be fully covered once the pavement is fully resurfaced. Burnett said yes, but maintenance will be needed if the surface materials are removed by someone squealing their tires or some other means.
