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Johnson County Precinct #3
10420 FM 917
Alvarado, Texas 76009 |
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Phone: |
(817) 790-5333 |
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Fax: |
(817) 790-3393 |
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Email: |
gro.xtytnuocnosnhoj@3tcp |
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Burn Ban Information |
A Burn Ban is not in effect at this time
Effective: Jul 20, 2009 |
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| MAJOR REBUILD PROJECT FOR EAST RENFRO! |
UPDATE - August 18, 2010 - The first layer of oil and rock has been applied on the full length of Renfro, and the new intersection at FM917 is open. The permanent signs should start going up in the next day or so. You won't see much work done over the next 10 days to 2 weeks because the emulsion oil has to cure before the final layer can be applied. The contractor will be working on levelling up the road with intersecting roads and driveways during this time. There is the possibility for patches of loose gravel so please drive carefully. You can expect to see some tire marks in this layer of gravel. It seems that some heavy traffic came out of some driveways right after the gravel was laid. One driver even showed how happy he was with the new road that he spun out with his tires (thank you for your enthusiasm!). Yes, there are some spots that did not cover well but they will all be taken care of before the final top layer is applied. It's almost done!! Thanks for your patience!
UPDATE – August 13, 2010 – The end is in sight! The entire road has been covered with the final layer of road base and the new intersection is taking final shape. On Friday, Saturday, and Monday, the contractor will be working the road to give it a slight dome shape (called the “crown”) to allow rainwater to run off of it after it is completed. During this time, they cannot keep it as moist as they have been because on Monday afternoon or Tuesday they will be applying the first layer of emulsion and topping rock. If the road base is too wet, the emulsion cannot soak into the road base and the final road topping will only peel off. It doesn’t make sense to go to this effort and not finish it correctly. Once the emulsion and rock is applied, there will be some loose rock and minor dust (although it shouldn’t be too bad) for the next two weeks while the emulsion is allowed to cure. That will be followed by the application of the final emulsion and rock which will finish the job. Again, we apologize for all inconvenience, however, the result will be a new road for you to enjoy.
UPDATE August 5, 2010 - The remaining mile from the bridge to FM 917 has been ground up and cement stabilizer added for strength. I expect they will haul out road base for it on Friday Aug 6th. The work on the new intersection is going quickly and it's starting to take shape. Next week more road base will be hauled for the entire 3.1 miles and the final shaping will be done. Then it's time to start the topping . . . maybe Friday. The contractor has done a great job at keeping the road wet to reduce the dust problem and he told us that he will continue to do so over the weekend. Please drive slowly through the work area to be safe and reduce dust.
UPDATE August 2, 2010 - At a late afternoon Commissioners Court meeting the agreement between Precinct #3 and TxDOT was finalized so the new intersection is about to become a reality. About half of the remaining mile of Renfro was milled up today and I expect that tomorrow (Tuesday) the remainder will be taken up. AT&T has completed the work on the phone lines so the construction of the new intersection at Renfro and FM917 will begin in the next day or so. The anticipated day for beginning the topping on Renfro is Friday of next week (Aug 13th). Dust has been a major complaint over the past couple of days and the contractor has agreed to try to keep it watered more - even over the weekend. This will NOT eliminate the dust but we'll see if we can keep it down some. Also, there have been complaints about the big trucks speeding in the area. The Constable's Office and the Sheriff's Office are aware of the problem and will be patrolling more. I've notified the contractor that if caught speeding, the truck drivers will receive citations!
UPDATE August 1, 2010 - The road base has been added for the first two miles from CR 529 south. The road will remain in this condition until the remaining mile is brought up to the same level - I expect that will be about a week or less. The intersection redesign for Renfro and FM917 will face it's last hurdle when it goes to a special called commissioners court meeting on Monday afternoon at 4pm. AT&T is already moving a major phone trunk to allow the new road construction. Things are progressing very rapidly overall and the dust and rough road should be over in the next few weeks.
UPDATE July 28, 2010 - The first two miles of road is still being processed and concrete stabilizer added. Road base will start being hauled in over the next couple of days to raise the surface of the final road. Today I got the final word from TxDOT to allow us to redesign the intersection of Renfro at FM 917. We will be turning Renfro slightly to intersect FM917 at nearly a 90 degree angle. This will make the intersection much safer and should reduce the high number of accidents that have occurred there. This project will be in conjunction with the work done on the south end of Renfro.
UPDATE July 26, 2010 - Starting from the intersection with CR 529, approximately 2 miles of Renfro has had the old asphalt topping milled up and hauled away. The current stopping point is the bridge in the 4100 block. Today they started "reclaiming" the milled road road which simply means that a large machine grinds up the remaining dirt to a depth of approximately 8". Concrete powder is being added (22 lbs per square yard). moistened with water and then mixed into the ground dirt. The road is then worked with a motor-grader to smooth it and heavy rollers to pack it. This process will continue for 2 or three days this week until they reach the bridge. Then comes the process of hauling in extra road base to add to the top for more strength. The new road base will be spread with a motor-grader, moistened, and packed with rollers. With the process that is being done, the finished road will be extremely strong and should handle the weight of the heavy trucks. The contractor is actually working very quickly for the amount of work that is being done.
July 24, 2010 - The contractor is in the process of grinding approximately 4" of the asphalt off of the roadway and hauling it away.By this evening they had completed approximately 2 miles of the grinding with about one more mile to go. They should start back on Monday morning. We've had a couple of calls asking about the traffic control and the use of a pilot vehicle. Sometimes when you try to enter Renfro from a side road, the person working traffic control will stop you for what seems to be no reason. Please understand that the general traffic must follow the lead pilot vehicle for safety reasons because the large trucks that are hauling the gravel are still going up and down the road - sometimes against the traffic flow. The trucks and pilot vehicle are in radio contact with each other so they can travel safely. If drivers were allowed to enter Renfro at will, it would create a very unsafe situation for the. Please have patience . . . this will be over soon!
July 22, 2010 - The complete rebuilding of the county portions of East Renfro has been a priority project for Commissioner Stringer since he took office last year. The problem, however, was that the logistics of completing that project were much too large for Precinct #3's resources. This portion of East Renfro is, by far, the busiest county road in Precinct #3 and we didn't have a large enough work crew to handle the traffic problem and complete the work at the same time. We didn't have the necessary milling machine to remove the top layers of asphalt and there were too few trucks to haul the tons and tons of road base needed. The only option was to write the specifications and have a contractor do the job.
While Precinct #3 is still responsible for overseeing the project, Northeastern Pavers out of Granbury was awarded the bid to rebuild East Renfro from CR 529 (near Villa Dianna Restaurant) to FM 917 (approximately 3.1 miles) on July 12, 2010, with a scheduled starting date of August 16th. On Tuesday, July 20th, we received a call from the project manager at Northeastern Pavers who told us that they had some contracts moved back and wanted to start on the Renfro project earlier than planned - specifically, they wanted to start on Thursday, July 22nd - only 2 days away!
We jumped into high gear to arrange for signage and to notify the residents whose properties front on East Renfro and use all available means to get the word out to as many drivers as possible (look for an article in Saturday's Burleson Star newspaper.)
Work began on Thursday morning at the north end of East Renfro near Villa Dianna Restaurant with the milling and removing of several inches of asphalt. The work is expected to last for approximately 6 weeks with the result being a brand new road.
Here's what to expect:
The first two weeks or so will be the worst for folks living in the area. The top layers of asphalt will be milled and removed, the subgrade will be ground up to a depth of approximately 8", and cement powder will be added to the subgrade to stabilize the soil. This will be the dirtiest time with the road conditions expected to range from dusty to muddy as they turn the dirt, add the cement powder, and moisten it to be tightly compacted. The working areas will be reduced to one lane with a pilot vehicle leading traffic through. Expect some delays if you travel through the area. A better idea is to find an alternate route. There will be traffic control persons stationed at every intersection through the work areas.
The crews will be working from approximately 7:00am to 8:00pm on Mondays through Saturdays. During later evening and nighttime hours the roadway will be completely open for traffic.
We know that rebuilding this road is a major inconvenience for residents and drivers, however, that road is long overdue to be rebuilt. Please be patient and understand that in a few short weeks you'll have a brand new road that should last for years!
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| COUNTY ROAD 530-B IS BEING REBUILT! |
UPDATE August 18, 2010 - All of the road base material has been hauled in and spread. Over the next few days we will be pouring the concrete headwalls over the culverts so that the won't be crushed in the future. We expect to do the final shaping of the road starting Monday, Aug 23rd and continuing that week. We are planning on shooting the primer oil on Monday, August 30th and then applying the gravel on Wednesday, Sept 1st. Watch for signs going out to confirm the date the oil will be applied. We're not far from being done with the road so please bear with us.
UPDATE August 5, 2010 - The entire road that we are rebuilding has been stabilized with cement powder from IH35 to the last entrance to the gas wells. Next we haul in the road base so the top of the road can be shaped. This will be dusty but we will try and keep the road surface wet to reduce the dust problem. Coming up will be the application of the primer oil. It's nasty stuff and we'll put out signs ahead of time to warn everyone. It will have to dry on the road for a couple of days before we can put the final topping on. More will be explained about the primer as we get closer to application.
UPDATE August 2, 2010 - I thought it interesting that while I was fielding complaints of dust on the project that is rebuilding East Renfro, today we received a complaint from the project on CR 530-B that it was too muddy! I guess we just can't win! The front stretch from IH35 to the first 90 egree turn has been treated with cement to stabilize the soil. Tomorrow (Tuesday, Aug 3rd) we'll finish the cement application on the road down to the second curve. After that we'll be hauling in extra road base for a couple of days to add to the strength of the road. Once it is hauled in and packed, it's time for the part that I really dread . . . the application of the primer oil. We'll put out signs a couple of days ahead of time to warn landowners that the oil is coming. It will have to dry on the road for a couple of days before the final top is applied. I STRONGLY recommend that you make arrangements to avoid driving down CR530-B once the oil is down. Not only can it get on your car if you go too fast, but your tires will track it up onto your driveway. We're very sorry for having to use the primer but it is necessary to bond the road surface to the road base.
UPDATE August 1, 2010 - On Monday morning two large trucks containing cement powder will be on the road, spreading the powder. The road will be ground up again to mix the powder with the subgrade to stabilize it. This will avoid the dirt shifting under the weight of heavy trucks and allow the road to last much longer. When the mixing is complete, additional road base will be brought it and spread before the oil and final topping is applied. The next several days will have dusty conditions on the road. We're sorry but it's part of the road building process.
UPDATE Thursday, July 29, 2010 - Yesterday we installed three culverts across the road but, after we inspected the jobs, found that one (about halfway down 530B) was set incorrectly. Today we will be pulling that culvert back up and re-installing it correctly. This will cause the road to be shut down for approximately one hour or so during the morning hours. We sincerely apologize but we'll get it fixed. Start planning for next Monday when we apply concrete powder to the road and grind it in. This will stabilize the soil so that the subgrade will remain solid for years. This process is very dusty so plan accordingly. Thanks!
UPDATE Wednesday, July 28, 2010 - Beginning at approximately 7:30am today, CR 530-B will be completely closed for several hours while we remove and replace three culverts that go under the road at different locations. We will replace all three simultaneously to minimize the time that the road must be closed and will have the road completely open by 4:30pm. Emergency traffic such as police, fire, or EMS will be accomodated, however, routine traffic will not be allowed through. Please make other arrangements if you need to go in or out CR530B today.
UPDATE - Monday, July 26, 2010 - Today the road work began with a process called "reclaiming" where a large piece of equipment actually grinds up the road to a depth of approximately 8". A little more needs to be done on Tuesday and then we will add the stabilizer to the soil to strengthen it up. This will consist of concrete powder added to the road surface and the reclaimer goes back over it to mix it into the soil. ****IMPORTANT!!**** On Wednesday, July 28, we will completely close the road down for several hours while we dig up and replace three culverts that are no longer serviceable. Only emergency traffic (police/fire/EMS) will be able to get through during that time so please plan accordingly.
July 19, 2010 - County Road 530-B is a narrow county road that runs off IH-35 near the Briaroaks overpass. It provides only one way in and out for several residents and all traffic for 21 gas wells. As you can imagine, it's in horrible condition and we plan to replace three culverts crossing the road and completely rebuild the road starting in a couple of weeks or so. It's going to be a traffic nightmare and we will do our best to complete the work with as little inconvenience as possible. The three gas companies that service the wells there have agreed to provide funds to Precinct #3 to defray the costs of rebuilding the road, and they will have to reschedule all truck traffic going to and from the wells to evening and nighttime hours only.
Letters will be mailed to all residents of this road on Tuesday, July 20, that will explain the rebuilding procedure. We will start moving equipment in on Monday, July 26, and start grinding up the road on Tuesday, July 26.
This project brings a list of challenges to the table. There is only one way in and one way out so traffic control will be an issue. Our working hours will be 7:30am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday. Although there will be some periods that the road may be completely closed for a short time, we will insure that it is open for full traffic use by 5:30pm each day. In fact, the gas companies have agreed to reschedule their necessary truck traffic to be between the hours of 6:00pm and 6:00am.
The first date that we expect the road to be completely closed will be on Wednesday, July 28th. We will simultaneously be replacing three culverts that go under the roadway and traffic must be stopped as we dig out the old culverts and install the new ones. We are replacing all three at the same time to limit the amount of time that the road must be closed. We cannot stop to allow general traffic to go through, but if emergency traffic (police, fire, or EMS) needs to respond, we will immediately stop what we are doing, fill in the ditch with dirt, and allow them to pass as necessary.
Another challenge is the narrowness of the road. We will attempt to widen the roadway as much as possible, but we don’t expect it to end up much wider than it is due to fences having been built within the right of way and the need for drainage ditches to maintain water flow.
Still another issue that must be addressed is that building roads is a dirty business. There will be times when the roadway will be muddy, and other times when it will be dusty. The standard method of road building used by the county is a “chip seal” process where the bare road base is covered with a primer, and then topped with an oil emulsion and rock topping. While we would rather cover the road with a hot asphalt layer, that is a very expensive process and our budget just will not allow it.
Please keep checking here for continuous updates as the project continues, and we thank you for your patience and understanding.
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