ACPA Quarter 3 2016

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Concrete Pavement Progress 16
concrete and a 6-in. gravel base. Streets in com-
mercial or light industrial areas are 37 ft back-
to-back of curb with 8 in. of non-reinforced
concrete and an 8-in. gravel base, says Werner.
“All streets handle automobile, bus, and truck
traffic, but the truck traffic has declined since
the local mill closed.”
Based on the plans for replacement of streets, the
final two asphalt streets will be reconstructed
as concrete in 2018, says Dave Vander Velden,
Street Commissioner for the village. The streets
are part of the redevelopment of the former mill
site to a mixed-use development.
“Concrete works well for a number of reasons,”
Vander Velden says. “It tends to be cooler in the
summer; our primary arteries that handle the
greatest volume of truck traffic are very durable;
and concrete holds up well to snow plows and
salt usage.”
One policy the village enforces is designed to
maintain the integrity of the street. “If a util-
ity company must remove concrete to repair
utilities under the street, we require them to
remove the entire panel, not just cut a small
part of the panel and replace it,” Vander Velden
explains. “This makes it easier to replace the
concrete without compromising the design of
the pavement, and it maintains the aesthetics
of the road.”
“The village does a good job planning road re-
placements and works with utilities tomake sure
a new 50- to 60-year pavement is not placed over
a water or gas line that will need replacement in
10 years,” saysWerner. “We also re-use materials
by milling and pulverizing asphalt to use as the
base of the new road or by crushing concrete for
the base when replacing a concrete road. This
reduces the expense of the project and reduces
the amount of valuable material hauled away.”
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