CC Newsletter - 03/09/06 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The path runs along the north side of Bethel Drive from the corner of Bethel Drive and Roosevelt Boulevard to a point across from the local office of the American Red Cross at 862 Bethel Drive. The path is intended to provide a safe walking place for local residents, especially schoolchildren. The new walkway is set back approximately 10 feet from the existing street travel lanes and meanders slightly to avoid conflicts with trees. It is fully accessible to people using wheelchairs or walkers. Paved access points marked with bright yellow tactile mats have been constructed at several locations to bridge the narrow swale that runs along the north side of Bethel Drive. The project was reviewed and approved as a high priority by the Trainsong Neighbors and the Bethel Weed and Seed Program. The project also earned praise from the Oregon Pacific Chapter of the American Red Cross, in part because of the safer access it provides to Trainsong Park behind the Red Cross building. For more information, contact Principal Engineer Michelle Cahill at 682-6855. Airport Runway Earns Paving Award The new parallel runway at the Eugene Airport has received an award for paving excellence from the Asphalt Paving Association of Oregon. The paving association announced its 2006 awards, including the third-place award for the airport runway in the commercial-industrial category, at its annual statewide conference on Monday evening at the Valley River Inn. The commercial-industrial category draws a large number of entries statewide. Paving award judges credited the Eugene Airport runway paving project for achieving excellence while meeting a very challenging set of construction standards set by the Federal Aviation Administration. More than 68,000 tons of asphalt was used on the job. Special steps in the paving process included using a dual laser system to Final lift of paving being applied last summer control the first paving lane, testing the final surface with a profilograph, and grooving the final surface with saw cuts every 1.5 inches to increase surface friction and improve drainage. For more information about the runway paving award, contact Airport Manager Bob Noble at 682-8352. Inspections of New Construction Reach Record Numbers Inspection of building construction in Eugene and the urban transition area falls to inspectors in the Planning and Development Department (PDD). Until recently, a high inspection count was more than 225 inspections in a day. That number was eclipsed on the Tuesday following the Presidents Day holiday when more than 400 inspections were requested. The counts continue to be higher than average. Inspections are scheduled daily by the permit holders. When the number of inspections exceeds staff resources, some inspections are held over until the following work day. A limited number of holdovers, as they are called, are a normal part of the process, but the number of holdovers over the last three weeks has been unusually high. Holdovers are disruptive for the contractors trying to keep projects on schedule. Builders are often dependent on an inspection occurring before another phase of work can begin. As a courtesy, PDD staff calls the jobs that will have inspection holdovers each morning to minimize the level of scheduling inconvenience permit holders experience. PDD has taken steps to address staff capacity, with recruitment underway to fill unexpected vacancies and inspection positions. For more information about building inspections and holdovers, contact Building Official Stuart Ramsing, Planning and Development, at 682-6801, or EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 March 9, 2006