West Memphis Public Works Roundup

West Memphis Public Works Roundup

City addressing old issues in new meeting place

news@theeveningtimes.com

Pot holes, unkempt yards, roads projects and recycling were all reported during the December Public Work Committee meeting in West Memphis. The meeting moved from City Hall to the newly renovated meeting room at the Civic Center. A screen and projector make presentations and even video conferences possible in the refurbished meeting space.

“I think it is the nicest meeting space we now have,” said Councilwoman Ramona Taylor. “Having the meetings here gives us a chance to show it off a little bit.”

Public Works Administrative Assistant Rhonda Standridge reported recycling in the city for the month of November tipped the scales at 15,480 pounds, with one full electronic waste trailer load.

City Engineer Phillip Sorrell brought the panel up to date on road construction slated around the City. He shared the latest plans for the new Hino Boulevard bridge, work on South Loop and a new signal south of Interstate 40 on College Boulevard.

“The Hino bridge project is moving forward,” said Sorrell. “We got our final review last week and we are working through it now. We are still looking at a springtime construction schedule for that project.”

Motorists won’t notice anything new on South Loop for more than a year.

“We got approval at the last city council meeting and we got the agreement of understanding back from the highway department for South Loop Road,” said Sorrell. “We need to get that back to them and then we’ll send out letters of interest for engineers. The next phase is just the design work from Port Road to Waverly Road.”

The idea for a new traffic light on the Interstate 40 service road and the east bound exit at College Boulevard (Highway 118) met approval at the last Metropolitan Policy Organization meeting. Sorrell outlined the first steps in making the concept into a reality for the Public Works Committee.

“We heard from the Highway department yesterday,” said Sorrell. “We are talking about a traffic light there and intersection improvements. It’s a dangerous intersection. The Highway Department will do the design and engineering, our part was to designate some Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds toward the project.”

Sorrell reported pothole repairs at the MLK park.

Code enforcement sent out a load of grass cutting letters and surveyed the City for blighted houses.

“We’ve been busy; we sent out 802 letters,” said Code Enforcement officer Mike Antel. “A lot of people coming to City Hall to pay.”

“Last month we went through the City on a demolition survey to find the worst houses, those that are fallen in and need demo.

There is a big list.”

By John Rech