Dirt Road Committee Discusses Upcoming North Escambia Paving Projects

April 9, 2008

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Paving miles and miles of dirt roads in North Escambia won’t be an easy task, and doing it on a limited budget will make it a lengthy process.

The Escambia County Dirt Road Paving Committee met Tuesday morning in Molino to address that status of paving the county’s dirt roads, most of which are in the northern District 5.

District 5 Commissioner Kevin White said that about 18 miles of dirt roads had been paved in the district since he took office.

There is about $1 million budgeted in 2008 for dirt road paving, $1 million in 2009, $1.5 million in 2010 and $1.7 million in 2011.

While a million dollars sounds like a lot of money, it will only pave about one mile of the average dirt road in the county. It is not a simple process of putting asphalt down on a ne existing dirt road. Right of way easements must be obtained, and there is a lot of engineering work to design the road and a drainage system that will meet state and local specifications. All of that must take place prior to getting bids on a road.

White says he hopes his fellow commissioners will provide more funds, but acknowledges that it is not likely to happen since there are almost no unpaved county roads in the other four commission districts.

Former District 5 Commissioner Wilson Robertson pledged that if he is relected, he will do all that he can to support District 5. Robertson, who served District 5 from 1988 to 1992 and again from 1996 to 2000, is currently running for the District 1 commission seat held by Commission Chairman Mike Whitehead.

“Basically you don’t have dirt roads in any other district other than District 5,” Robertson said. “If I get back on the commission, I promise the people of District 5 my support.”

“I even gave up playing golf today on my golf day to attend this meeting,” Robertson joked with the committee, in apparent reference to a published report that his opponent Mike Whitehead played golf rather than attending an anniversary celebration at the Myrtle Grove Volunteer Fire Department just over a week ago.

This year’s million dollars is being used to pave East Chipper Road south of Molino and Nicholson’s Drive off Molino Road, and any leftover funds will go to start the design process for paving Brickyard Road in Molino.

Right of way acquisition is also underway along Fairgrounds road, with four property owners that still have not deeded the necessary land to the county. Two of the four are expected to do so soon, but the other right of way land may have to be taken under legal eminent domain proceedings.

Dirt Road Paving Committee member Leroy Wiggins asked if there any progress toward paving Pelt Road in Walnut Hill. Pelt Road runs from Highway 97 to Pine Forest Road, a distance of almost exactly one mile.

“It is a very used through road,” Wiggins said. “School buses, mail carriers, people going to Ernest Ward (Middle School) use that road a lot. Plus there are seven houses on that road. We have all of the right of way easements on that road.”

Wes Moreno from the county’s engineering department said that Pelt Road was “not high on the current list”, but he would look into it.

“The objective is the same for all of us,” Wiggins said. “I want to see all of the dirt roads in this county paved.”

Pictured above: Pelt Road in Walnut Hill runs one mile from Highway 97 to Pine Forest Road. It was one of the roads discussed Tuesday morning at a meeting of the Escambia County Dirt Road Paving Committee. NorthEscambia.com photo.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News