Council presses administration on slow start to citywide paving program

Council members at the Newark Municipal Council meeting on June 3 pressed city engineering and administration officials over what several called an unusually slow start to street paving this year, asking when citywide paving would begin and why previously approved projects had not been completed.

The issue surfaced during discussion of a change order related to street paving and pedestrian improvements. Councilman Ramos said, “this is the first year that since I’ve been around that I have seen very little to no paving activity,” and asked whether bid or approval problems were to blame. Several council members raised concerns about potholes and damage to residents’ cars while they waited for repairs.

Deputy director of engineering Dolores Martinez Woodland told the council the city is facing longer-than-expected approval timelines with the state Department of Transportation and coordination challenges with utilities, and that many items on the agenda represent time extensions rather than new starts. “We are having some challenges with the approval process and how long it takes with the DOT,” Martinez Woodland said. She also said the administration has been reallocating budget items to close gaps and that some contracts are being extended because state approval has taken longer than anticipated.

Director Dean Wardenshaw said the city has averaged about 30 miles of paving per year in recent years and that some projects are underway but not yet visible because utility work or other excavations must “settle” before a final pavement surface is placed. “Right now…we officially kick off the city projects of paving citywide paving on the city side. Then water and sewer will be coming behind it,” Wardenshaw said, adding that some streets already completed include Elizabeth Avenue and Doremus Avenue. Wardenshaw estimated a planning-level cost of about $500,000 per mile for paving but cautioned that costs vary with sidewalks and other scope elements.

Council members pressed for more frequent, specific updates and for the engineering department to provide lists of streets planned for imminent work. Martinez Woodland and Wardenshaw said they could send email updates with weekly activity and limits for upcoming contracts; the council agreed to request a dedicated presentation on paving at a premeeting in July to examine the schedule, funding sources and how temporary patches and emergency repairs are handled.

Council members and directors discussed funding mechanics: the city often pursues state or federal grant programs that do not cover 100% of the work, requiring municipal matching funds. Martinez Woodland said grant awards sometimes limit the number of locations eligible and that the city must decide whether to supplement funding to increase the number of streets covered. Wardenshaw emphasized coordination with other utilities and paced paving to avoid wasted work when new utility cuts must later be excavated.

Council members concluded by requesting a written list of streets tied to each grant or contract and a presentation at the council’s July premeeting. The council asked that engineering provide clearer timelines for when temporary patches will be replaced by permanent paving and for the department to notify council offices when temporary patches show signs of failure so crews can revisit them.

Ending: The council set a follow-up: engineering will provide a written list of near-term paving locations and a presentation at the July premeeting; council members said they will send specific questions through the clerk to allow staff to prepare detailed answers.