BATH TOWNSHIP — The Bath Township Board of Trustees passed a measure May 2 that will provide funding for one additional road construction project this year.
In a 3-0 vote, the trustees approved an amendment to the 2018 proposed road construction budget that now includes the milling and repaving of the southern section of Byron Road, from State Route 235 to West Dayton-Yellow Springs Road. Township Road Supervisor Michael Rhoades told township trustees that this section of the road is in poor condition and coming apart.
“We were going to mill the road and chip seal it, but it is essentially a Band-Aid,” Rhoades said. “It is time to put a new surface on the road.”
This year, the township will be applying asphalt skin patching to potholes and areas where the asphalt has deteriorated on the north side of Byron Road, from West Yellow Springs-Fairfield Road to State Route 235. Current plans call for the milling and resurfacing of this section of the road in 2019, but Rhoades said those plans would be examined further.
According to Rhoades, the township is saving $49,000 in projected annual costs by participating in the Greene County collective-bid paving program. This savings will be used to help fund the Byron Road project, which Rhoades anticipates will cost approximately $191,000.
“The collective bid will enable us to save money on the milling and overlaying of a portion of Bath Road and all of Ravenwood Drive and Clearcreek Trail. The surfaces of these roads have come completely apart, and they need to be replaced,” said Rhodes.
He also noted that the cost for milling would be $1.35 per square yard, and asphalt would carry a price tag of $62 per ton.
Township resident Dave Anderson pointed out to township trustees that heavy concrete trucks traveled the southern section of Bryon Road on a daily basis.
“My thought is that township officials need to talk to someone about the truck drivers using another route. They are using Bryon Road as a shortcut, and they are tearing up the pavement,” Anderson said.
Township Trustee Steve Ross also mentioned that he had passed two concrete trucks on Byron Road when traveling the full length of the road that very day and proposed discussing the issue with a representative of the cement plant.
Bath Township Fiscal Officer Elaine Brown reviewed the list of road construction projects for 2018 and the projected costs of all the projects. Brown’s rounded-up estimate for the revised road construction budget for 2018 totaled $436,000.
Rhoades also expressed his concerns about moving forward with the microsurfacing paving treatment on Appaloosa Trail and Wilkerson Road after he inspected Dayton-Yellow Springs Road, which the township applied a microsurfacing pavement treatment to nearly two years ago.
“The more I look at Dayton-Yellow Springs Road, the more I don’t like it. The more I talk with some of the people that used microsurfacing on their roads, the more they don’t like it,” Rhoades said. “I don’t want to make a bad decision. I rather stop where I am at and come up with a different plan. It is a lot of money to put down for something that might not last.”
Ross pointed out that both Appaloosa Trail and Wilkerson Road, which are residential roads, are traveled less than Dayton-Yellow Springs Road. Therefore, they would receive less wear and tear. He also noted that Woodhaven Trail, which the township previously microsurfaced, “looked great.” However, the microsurfacing pavement on Deerhorn Trail is starting to crack a little.
“I think Woodhaven looks good because it was the first road they (road contractor) microsurfaced, and they did a nice job. However, I question the quality of work they did on the other roads,” Ross said.
Ross stressed the importance of resurfacing Appaloosa Trail this year, and he asked Rhoades to discuss his concerns with representatives of the Greene County Engineer’s Office. Ross directed Rhoades to report his findings to the board of trustees at the next township meeting.
Bath Township voters approved an additional 2.2-mill, five-year levy in 2016 that generates approximately $200,000 per year for the maintenance, repairs and improvements of township roads and bridges.
