Sausalito approves road repair plan

Sausalito is hoping to make some headway on road repair this fiscal year.

A list of priority road projects was approved unanimously by the City Council on Tuesday.

The list is based off of a 2022 road maintenance report that gave the city a pavement condition index score of 58 out of 100. The repairs will not improve the rating, but the score will not get worse, either.

“We really want to make sure that we try to figure out our approach, which will allow us to not tread water, which is what this program is this year, it’s treading water,” City Manager Chris Zapata said. “It is not improving our pavement. It’s no better, no worse than last year, we stay at 58, which I believe is unacceptable.”

The around 15 priority projects, which included some alternative roads based on costs, include sections of Bridgeway, Monte Mar Drive, Easterby Street and Locust Street.

The repairs include resurfacing, micro-sealing and crack-sealing streets to increase the life expectancy of the city’s 26 miles of roads.

The preliminary estimate for the proposed work this cycle is around $1.2 million, according to Kevin McGowan, public works director for the city.

“These are very rough estimates,” McGowan said. “Cost for resurfacing and constriction can significantly change each fiscal year, especially with labor costs and material costs changing so radically each fiscal year.”

Zapata said the list of projects and its approval by the City Council is a preliminary step before staff can move forward. A list of specific projects is needed in order for the city to receive $184,249 in state funding.

The City Council received a draft capital improvement project report in April for this fiscal year, which included a future 2025 street resurfacing project with a budget of $1.95 million. In June, the City Council approved the city’s budget, which had allocated funding for the program.

In 2022, Pavement Engineering Inc. reviewed the city’s roads as part of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s pavement management technical assistance program. The company’s analysis resulted in a pavement management report, which gave each road a score and potential projects.

According to the report, the city’s average pavement condition index score is 58 out of 100; a score of 70 is the recommended standard. McGowan said in the past year, some efforts have been made to improve the street situation, including resurfacing Edwards Avenue — a complex project that cost over $1 million for less than 900 feet of roadway.

“The report noted that the city can increase its PCI rating by dedicating more resources to repair and resurface its roadways,” McGowan said.

Allocating $1.8 million a year would not be enough to change the rating, according to the report. McGowan said $2.9 million a year would increase the rating by an average of five points over the next five years. The proposed projects would maintain the current rating of 58, McGowan said.

“I look forward to a time when we can devote more money to get that pavement index up,” Councilmember Jill Hoffman said. “I know we have budget constraints right now.”

Councilmember Janelle Kellman asked how the road repairs will impact the city’s poor risk assessment, and if the projects were thought of in this context. Zapata said the city addresses all dangerous conditions as soon as staff is made aware as part of its risk management approach.

McGowan said the list can be altered in the future if needed without any effect on the funding; the state only needs to ensure the funding is going to roadway repairs.