Street paving — five months later than usual — finally begins in Pueblo
Scott Harrison
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) — The latest delay in the year’s street paving operation was due to an unexpected shutdown of the asphalt plant providing material.
It happened last Thursday, a day before paving on Bonforte Boulevard was scheduled to start; a member of the paving team said that the plant was hit by lightning.
Fortunately, the plant quickly resumed production in time to begin paving last Friday on 1.5 miles of Bonforte between Highway 47 to Constitution Road, just north of US 50.
As of this Friday, the paving appears to be nearly complete, with only lane markings remaining to be applied.
Paving on Bonforte had already been slowed by rainy weather and what officials described as a delay in acquiring permits from the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), because both ends of Bonforte touch the highway intersections.
Neighbors and drivers said that they’re happy to see the much-needed paving happen, but also are frustrated by the slow pace of progress.
“I was hoping they’d done more paving sooner,” said neighbor Michael Perez. “We had a lot of dust around here. It was pretty bad for a while. My cars, I had to come out here and hose them off, to keep that gritty dirt off.”
Another neighbor said that because of the dust, he repainted his house and hired a professional to clean the interior.
Yet — for some residents — the benefits of the Bonforte paving far outweigh any inconveniences.
“That’s the best part, is to have the nice road where you’re not bouncing around, you don’t have to dodge potholes or dips in the road,” said neighbor Kellie Saylor. “And when it’s not paved, you don’t have to dodge the water holes.”
Other projects on the paving list were delayed by planned and unexpected utility projects that must be finished before paving starts.
Officials remain confident that they’ll complete this year’s paving before the arrival of winter weather, and the area’s warmer climate should help in that regard.
The next stops for paving crews are Saratoga and Lexington roads — slightly east of Bonforte — where the city removed 40 trees that had damaged the concrete infrastructure and would have undermined a repaving job.
Paving began on Friday on Lexington.