MCFARLAND, Calif. (KERO) — The city of McFarland and its drivers are getting long-overdue road improvements. A $6 million grant will completely rehabilitate about a dozen streets.
- A total of 11 streets are to be completely redesigned.
- Streets include Cliff Avenue, 5th Street, 7th Street, Roberson Avenue and more.
- According to McFarland Mayor Saul Ayon, each mile of road costs about $900,000 to repair, so it will take some time to repair all the roads.
Streets throughout the city of McFarland are slated for a complete makeover. Robertson Avenue is one of nearly a dozen streets considered “failed streets,” but that should change in a few months.
“5th Street, 3rd Street, Cliff Street, San Lucas, San Pedro, East Kern, 7th Street, I believe 9th Street and the two overpasses,” said McFarland Mayor Saul Ayon.
Mayor Ayon says these are just a few areas that could soon be addressed thanks to the $6 million secured by Congressman David Valadao.
The road expansion is a long overdue measure for the city, but it makes this project even more extensive.
Mayor Ayon says the city’s road network totals 77 kilometers and 23 of them need to be built from scratch.
“It’s been years and decades of neglect,” said Mayor Ayon. “They haven’t taken care of our roads or maintained them for a long time, and the result is: when you neglect roads and they get damaged like that, you have to rebuild them, which is even more costly.”
Mayor Ayon says the cost of repairing each mile of road is about $900,000, and with 23 miles of new road to be built, this project is still in its early stages.
“We have repaired about four or five streets in the last few years and are now repainting the crosswalks. So we are doing things that should have been done a long time ago,” said Mayor Ayon.
Mayor Ayon says that although the road repairs are only taking place in selected areas, there is a plan for the rest of the city as well.
“The roads, which are in passable and excellent condition, we will cover with some mud and reclaimed stone to maintain them for another five to ten years,” said Mayor Ayon.
Construction is already underway and four of the first ten streets are expected to be completed by October 30.
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