State aid to pay for street work

Two of the oldest and busiest streets in a subdivision in town will get a new overlay thanks to money from the state.

Pea Ridge was one of 50 cities to be approved for $250,000 in State Aid Street money, according to Nathan See, Street Department superintendent.

"We just got approved Wednesday," See said, explaining that a board of Arkansas mayors decides what programs will receive the federal highway funds.

"They do the study and everything," See said.

The city spent about $40,000 to $50,000 correcting poor drainage on North Harvey Wakefield Street in preparation for the street overlay.

"Back then, in 1997, we didn't have the same rules for development," See said, explaining that the drainage was brought up to current city standards. Previously, two culverts were going into a drainage area where there were no inlet boxes, he said. The city added inlet boxes improving drainage to prevent the land from holding water.

The overlay will be on North and South Harvey Wakefield, both of which connect to Arkansas State Highway 94. The project is expected to be done in 2017. A section of Green Street to Weston Street will also be overlaid.

"The state will have an engineer," See said. "The city has no monies in it at all. State does it all -- inspects, everything."

There are several other street projects including work on Greer and Shrader, Hazelton Road and Carden Road.

See said the county is improving Carden Road to Bloxham Road to make it passable for emergency vehicles.