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Eustis commission approves $298K pavement-management study to guide road work
Summary
The City of Eustis approved a resolution to hire a pavement-management consultant to update a 2012 pavement study and produce predictive data to guide up to $5 million in future road work; the $298,198 contract will be paid from the capital plan and is budgeted this year.
The City Commission of the City of Eustis on June 5 approved Resolution 25-40 to contract for a pavement-management study and software, continuing a long-term road-maintenance program.
The vote authorizes a professional services agreement with a pavement-management firm for $298,198. Rick Derrick, the city’s director of engineering, told commissioners the update will replace a 2012 study and provide block-by-block condition, base testing and striping reflectivity data to schedule preventive work rather than wait for expensive base failures.
Derrick said the work will include automated collection and boots-on-the-ground verification, drill coring to assess base strength and integration of results into the city’s GIS. “It’s about a million dollars worth of equipment and 1,500 man hours,” Derrick said, arguing the city does not have the in-house tools or staff to produce the same data.
Commission discussion centered on cost and on whether the city already has sufficient data. One commissioner questioned spending nearly $300,000 for a study when staff and past reports already identify many problem streets. “It’s a lot of money for a study for, I think, on a lot of stuff that we already know,” the commissioner said.
Vice Mayor Ashcraft and others pressed for a longer-term view: staff said the study will guide decision-making for roughly 10–12 years and help prioritize $5 million in anticipated resurfacing investments so the city can “catch issues before they become bigger issues.” The city manager and Derrick told the commission the contract is within the capital-improvement plan and that $350,000 had been budgeted for pavement-related work this fiscal year.
Derrick explained procurement and scope: the last study had been piggybacked off the metropolitan planning organization’s contract; the proposed consultant would be engaged through the city’s continuing-services contracts and would deliver maps and a prioritized work plan. The work excludes state and county roads.
After discussion the commission voted to approve the resolution. Roll call recorded the motion as approved with all present commissioners voting aye.
Commissioners and staff said they expect the study to improve the efficiency of future resurfacing dollars and reduce lifecycle costs by identifying problems before they require full reconstruction.
