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The Albemarle City Council approved JT Russell & Sons, an Albemarle-based highway construction company, to perform pavement maintenance for about a dozen streets throughout the city, spanning 2.3 miles.

After opening a bid for a pavement maintenance re-surfacing project in February, two were ultimately received: JT Russell & Sons for $951,466 and NJR Group for $1,079,267.45.

“The project of this size, we don’t have the workforce in-house to be able to this type of specific work,” Public Works Director Ross Holshouser told council.

The following streets will be resurfaced within the coming months:

• North Second Street from Salisbury Avenue to Ludlow Street;
• South Second Street from South Street to Hearne Street;
• Leonard Avenue from East Main Street to Eastover Avenue;
• Groves Avenue from East Main Street to Amhurst Street;
• Crowell Avenue from East Main Street to Amhurst Street;
• Berry Avenue from East Main Street to Badin Road;
• Impala Drive from Moss Springs Road to Driftwood Lane;
• Driftwood Lane from Impala Drive to the dead end;
• Woodhaven Drive from N.C. Highway 740 to Heathwood Drive;
• Walnut Street from Monroe Street to Long Street;
• Wood Street from Monroe Street to Rogers Street;
• Hemlock Drive from Crestview Drive to Brenda Drive; and
• Brenda Drive from Collins Drive to Arbor Way.

While several streets have deteriorated over the years, the impetus for the project came after engineering company WithersRavenel presented to council a Pavement Condition Survey in December 2021.

The PCS is an assessment of the city’s current street condition along with analysis of the types of maintenance and repairs needed. The assessment graded Albemarle’s individual streets on a numbered scale, known as the Pavement Condition Index, from 1 being “very poor” to 100 being “very good.”

The city received a PCI score of 64, which is a “poor” score and almost three points lower than in 2015.