STEVENS POINT, WI (WSAU) — There may soon be a new age in pothole filling in Stevens Point.
While it may not be the biggest, best attention-grabbing headline, Mayor Mike Wiza says it’s a part of the proposed 2022 city budget that residents should be excited about.
“We’ve got a lot of things in our capital budget, like purchasing an infrared patcher,” said Mayor Wiza. “Which is a lot better than what you see a normal road crew using, where you just shovel some hot mix in and pat it down real good and hope for the best.”
Wiza says an infrared patcher works by not only heating the fill that goes into the hole but the surrounding pavement as well. That allows for a stronger bond between the hot mix and the surrounding pavement, which in turn makes the fix last longer.
“By doing the infrared we are going to get better patching that will last a lot longer,” said Wiza. He added that the vehicle, which costs around $150,000, will allow the city to “do more with less. It should allow us to get through a lot more patching because [the fill] won’t be popping out every year. We should be able to get a couple of years out of them, at least.”
In addition to the infrared patcher Wiza says the city’s fire department has also requested a new $900,000 straight stick truck. “It’s basically a ladder truck with no platform on the end. It’s used to rescue people in second, third, or fourth-story windows, kittens out of a tree- it comes in real handy for that.”
The purchase of both vehicles is subject to city council approval as part of the 2022 budget.
Other topics Wiza discussed with WSAU’s Mike Leischner include:
Start of video- big-ticket items in the proposed 2022 city budget
7:35- Future of the Belky lumber site
13:00- Live outdoor music continues in downtown
15:00- Art contest between Wiza and the Mayors of Rhinelander and Wausau
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