Fountain Hills public works outlines $5 million-plus paving program and $4 million federal sidewalk grant

Public works director Justin Weldy told the Fountain Hills Town Council that an ongoing paving effort and related pedestrian-safety work will continue into next year, with total paving work this year totaling more than $5 million.

"Previously approved by the council is phase 1 of the paving. The estimated cost for that is $1,500,000," Weldy said, and added that "Phase 2 ... is going to be in a few different locations in town. The estimated cost for that is $3,700,000." He said the two phases represent the majority of the town's paving plan this cycle.

Weldy presented a condensed PowerPoint covering paving, roadway sign replacement and pedestrian-safety capital projects. He said the town is responsible for just under 8,000 roadway signs and that crews have replaced roughly 200 regulatory, warning and street-name signs since August. He also described a program to identify and grind uneven walking surfaces ahead of larger sidewalk replacements.

The presentation included work funded by a federal grant Weldy described as totaling $4,000,000 for sidewalks. He said the portion north of La Montana on Saguaro is substantially complete, Palisades work is underway, and crews expect the final Saguaro section (between Colony and Gunsite) to start in mid or late January and wrap up by late spring, leaving only punch-list cleanup.

Weldy also updated the council on the town's wash-maintenance contract, saying the contractor began work at the end of October and has cleaned about "20 acres plus or minus," and on a long-awaited Golden Eagle Park erosion-control project that now shows before-and-after progress.

Council members pressed staff on procedural and technical details, including how potholes are tamped and whether alternative sidewalk-lift methods (foam injection versus grinding) have been cost-compared. Weldy said crews do have tampers and staff will investigate why they were not used on the observed pothole repairs and that they can perform a formal cost comparison of alternative sidewalk-raising methods.

Weldy also noted a small revenue stream from recycling ferrous and nonferrous materials collected by the street department; he said proceeds average about $500 and are deposited into the street fund to support sign replacement.

The council did not take formal action on the presentation but directed staff to follow up on technical questions raised by council members and indicated the sidewalk and paving projects will return as needed in future capital updates.