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New Castle residents urge city to repave West Sharp Street, citing potholes and safety risks
Summary
Three residents told the council West Sharp Street has severe potholes and a giant dip that threaten tires and safety; they said surrounding streets were recently paved while their block was repeatedly overlooked, and the city said it would send staff to assess the street.
Residents urged the New Castle City Council to add West Sharp Street to the paving schedule, saying the short block has deep potholes and a large dip that make travel hazardous.
Joseph Gallagher, who said he lives at 5 West Sharp Street, told the council ‘‘if you don’t go like, 5 miles an hour, you’re gonna get a bed rim or a damaged tire,’’ and said only three households use the short street. He asked when the city would address the damage and said he and two neighbors were requesting work.
Dan Wagner said drivers use the alley and the end of Sharp Street as a cut-through between South Jefferson and Fulton, often traveling ‘‘30, 40 miles an hour,’’ and that off‑road vehicles and motorcycles add to the deterioration. ‘‘When you get the road paved, it would at least slow down on the damage that’s continuing every day,’’ he said.
Property owner Robert DuBuono said he bought a home on West Sharp Street from the redevelopment authority and has invested in multiple properties in the neighborhood. He said four of five houses on the street are being rehabilitated, but ‘‘we’re the one street that hasn’t been paved,’’ despite surrounding streets being resurfaced. DuBuono said he has spoken to multiple city officials over three years without results and asked the council to follow through because the street is a public way the city must maintain.
The chair acknowledged the residents’ concerns, said staff would mark the request, and stated that ‘‘we’ll have somebody up there tomorrow to make an assessment.’’ The meeting record shows council members and city staff agreed to inspect the block and consider it for scheduling.
Next steps: the city said it would perform an assessment; no formal paving schedule or funding allocation was recorded in the meeting minutes.
