MARCH (POTHOLE REPAIR) MADNESS – YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK!

I was at the edge of our driveway, shortly after 1:15 p.m. ready to make a quick right turn on the south sidewalk on Cooley Avenue with Galena (our golden retriever with a curly tail) literally pulling me while out for her nearly 1,200 foot long, 15 min. walk. We typically walk on the sidewalk for about four back-and-forth laps from West 133rd to West 132nd. Galena enjoys the walks (repeated two or three times every day depending upon weather and her energy level) – she knows the terrain – every inch of it – having smelled it countless times with the aid of her up to 300 million olfactory receptors in her nose, compared to about six million in mine. And she is never bored. I also think, while she never reports to me, that she is looking for traces of current microbial life as opposed to NASA’S 2021Perseverance Mar’s Rover (arrived on the red planet on February 18) looking for ancient microbial life going back 4.5 billion years. Galena, however, is only interested in the here and now.

 

Normally, as I walk north on our driveway (what driveway? – we have never owned any cars – more like a wide walkway) I see -- what always looks like an endless view of beautiful Jefferson Park –– stretching forever.

 

Not today!

 

What I saw reminded me of a Military Tank Division roaring down Cooley – headed east.

 

It was the Cleveland City Pothole Repair Crew repairing potholes. – made up of four vehicles as shown in the attached composite photograph #1.

 

The crew was patching potholes with a hot asphalt mix – consisting of gravel, sand, and asphalt – being heated to about 300 to 350 deg. F.

 

The slow forward movement of the vehicles, the placing of the hot mix (better performance than cold patches) into the potholes by two workers exposed to the unpleasant smell and the dark smoke billowing out of the cooker (see #2), the noise from the vibrations of the metal roller (see #3) as it rolled over and compacted the hot mix – a well sequenced operation and Voila! – two filled up potholes (see #4) right in front of my eyes – just like brand-new ready for traffic to roll over.

 

The operation was over in a few minutes and I was back to my contemplative mood of enjoying our beautiful park while walking Galena.

 

Cleveland, like any other U.S. city, has streets with its share of potholes of all sizes and a big nuisance and not to mention expensive repairs to vehicles.

 

 

“Mayor Frank Jackson said in a recent budget hearing that pandemic losses had slashed half the budget planned for road repairs in 2021.

 

Cleveland intends to spend $12 million on road repair this year, prioritizing the worst roads first.

 

A major street repaving project was planned for 2021.

 

Spending on road repairs steadily increased in Cleveland over the last five years with the goal of major updates.

 

“If we had not gone into this pandemic recession, we would probably be moving towards a $20 million a year,” Mayor Jackson said in the meeting.

 

Both Cleveland and the Ohio Department of Transportation attribute slow downs in road repair to the pandemic.”

 

 

#5 shows a screenshot from Cleveland City Councilman Brian Kazy’s State of the Ward 16 (2021) address. For questions about the condition of your street, please contact Mr. Kazy at (216) 664-2942 or (216) 251-2331.

 

 

While imagining the Cleveland City Pothole Repair Crew slowly advancing along our streets, going from filling one pothole to filling another pothole, all with the objective of assuring a joyful street riding experience – I am reminded of Road Gangs from the old days that sang songs or at least that is what we are told in the folklore.

 

Here, in a lighter vein, is a suggested song:

 

Song of the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew!

We’re the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew

We repair potholes for you, you, and you

So you may have a pleasant ride

On city streets that are clean and wide

We’re the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew.

 

We’re the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew

Our hot mix sure smells like a brew

The vibration roller compacts the mix

And the result looks like a grand fix

We’re the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew.

 

We’re the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew

You can bet our hot mix is like superglue

The repaired potholes definitely look brand-new

Miles to go before we head home to chew

We’re the Cleveland Pothole Repair Crew.

 

 

Happy riding!