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www.acpa.org
Quarter 3, 2016
17
k i m b e r l y , w i
Municipalities
Benefit from Concrete
Technical Assistance
The city engineer for
small municipalities juggle many
things at one time—serving as street supervisor, engineer
for all programs, and whatever special projects pop up.This
leaves little time for research and evaluation of pavement
specifications as well as the comparison of pavement
materials.
In Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Concrete Pavement Asso-
ciation has built long-standing relationships with cities,
villages and townships that do not have access to expert
concrete technical assistance.
“We first have to convince them we are not snake-oil sales-
man who will promote concrete for all projects. We work
with themand recommend concrete onlywhen appropriate,”
says KevinW. McMullen, P.E., President of the Wisconsin
Concrete Pavement Association. “We will provide specifica-
tions that are more appropriate for small to medium city
traffic because the Department of Transportation specs are
more focused on large, high-volume roads and requiremore
manpower and equipment for quality control.”
McMullen and his staff have seen an increasing trend in the
use of concrete as small municipalities try to get a handle
on life-cycle costs of streets. Their personal approach—
meeting with people at public works association meetings
and visiting people in their cities—has been an effective
way to share the story of concrete. “There is nothing more
instructive than getting in the car with a city engineer or
street commissioner and driving around their cities. You
see what they must handle, and you see how you can help,”
McMullen says.
One of the keys to Kimberly’s success with
concrete is homeowner support that comes
as a result of proven savings, aesthetics, and
durability of concrete, says Werner. “Kimberly
made a commitment to use concrete years ago
and has managed their policy consistently. This
has resulted in concrete streets, sidewalks on
both sides of a street to improve walkability,
and ongoing maintenance and necessary re-
building to maintain the well-kept, attractive
appearance that is part of the standard of living
in Kimberly.