City staff to move forward with developer cost-share for portion of Saint Mark Street; full-street paving deferred for further outreach

City staff presented a 50/50 cost-share request from Home Oil for paving a section of Saint Mark Street during the Dothan administrative meeting on Jan. 7. The section under immediate consideration is the portion the developer will use as a truck exit; staff said they would pay the residential base rebuild and the developer would pay the heavier truck-build portion.

Staff said completing the entire street would cost about $355,000; if the city were to pave the full extent it was estimated at about $700,000. The immediate participation amount the city would incur for the segment under consideration was described in discussion as approximately $53,812 (city share for the quarter where the road will be paved now), with the remaining completion to be assessed in a separate process if property owners opt in.

Commissioners discussed precedent: the city has historically used a 50/50 cost-share and assessment model for paving projects and cited about 32 past projects since the 1960s. Commissioners asked staff to notify other property owners on the portion not currently scheduled for paving to determine whether they would participate in a future cost-share. One commissioner emphasized that the presence of truck traffic from the new facility increases justification to pave the portion now to avoid repeated maintenance costs.

What happens next

Staff will forward the request for the portion under consideration to the next commission meeting for approval of the assessment/project. They will also mail letters to adjacent property owners on the remaining portion to gauge interest in participating in a future assessment-based paving project.