Abby Smith
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) — The City of Pueblo Department of Public Works asked for input from city residents for a pothole filling effort that starts Monday and continues through Friday.
A city release issued last week described the upcoming effort as a pothole “blitz.”
KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior followed a crew that worked on the west side of the Steel City.
“I think it’s doing a good thing for our city, you know?” said Joseph Trujillo, a crew supervisor. “Just trying to get these roads fixed for people, so that they have a better-quality road to drive on. At the end of the day, that’s what we’re here for.”
Trujillo’s crew worked on a block of 10th Street, west of downtown, responding to a business owner’s tip about numerous potholes there.
“My granddaughter was pulling out here, and she got a flat tire in one of the potholes,” said Reggie Garcia, owner of the LATCON contracting firm. “Really bad, one of the deep ones over there. I do have a business here, and we have a lot of clients who come in. It does look bad. But I was surprised the crew came this soon.”
Several residents expressed the same sentiment to The Road Warrior.
City officials say that the pothole blitz doesn’t include the largest potholes because they require more work and are better fixed using hot mix asphalt; those potholes will be addressed later this summer.
Officials will provide a summary of potholes filled at the end of the blitz.
Trujillo said that the potholes should hold for several years, depending on moisture and freeze-thaw cycles.
“But the rest of the street continues to crumble around those potholes,” he said. “It will need to be repaved.”
The city encourages residents to submit suggestions and requests to the Department of Public Works by emailing pubworks@pueblo.us
“We’re asking residents to let us know where their biggest pain spots are throughout the city,” said Acting Director of Public Works Chuck Roy. “The City has done our street assessment for major arterial roads, and we have long-term plans for paving, sealing, patchwork, and other needs. What we’re seeking is for our residents to let us know about the potholes that affect their everyday drive in their neighborhood that isn’t scheduled for major road maintenance.”
According to the city, these requests do not include parking lots or streets outside of city limits, including Colorado state highways or roads.
Andrew Hayes — the city’s former public works director, who recently moved to the city’s economic development office — provided more details a day after the release was issued.
“For the first time, because of wet spring weather that produced more potholes, we’re going to have five crews out there,” he explained. “We’re going to patch potholes with cold mix. It doesn’t last as long as with hot mix, but we want to get those holes filled as soon as possible.”
Hayes added that the city is acquiring hot mix asphalt equipment that allows crews to patch potholes in warm or cold weather.
“Normally, we’re limited by the availability of hot mix asphalt in the winter, and that hinders our ability to make those higher-quality repairs,” he said.
In a story earlier this spring, KRDO 13’s The Road Warrior reported that Pueblo has a street staff of 25 people, with only two assigned to pothole repairs.
That same report revealed that many residents believe potholes are worse than ever this year, while city officials disagree.
A memorable happening during the first few months of The Road Warrior coverage was when a woman — in the dark, wearing a bathrobe on a windy morning — appeared during a live report to show what she described as $1,300 in pothole damage to her car.
The city requests that citizens provide as much specific information as possible about pothole locations.
For a look at the Roadway Asset Services (RAS) assessment in 2022, go to https://www.pueblo.us/2895/Road-Condition-Assessment-Summary.
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