Officials fixing failing asphalt

CELINA - Local and state contractors are working to repair roadways after asphalt poured last year by the Ohio Department of Transportation showed signs of deterioration.

Although U.S. 33 was paved just last summer, parts of the highway have already been crumbling, officials said.

Coldwater village administrator Eric Thomas also has reported damage on state routes 118 and 219, the main thoroughfares through town. They too were resurfaced last year. The largest pothole to emerge is about 18 inches in diameter in front of Coldwater High School's circle drive, Thomas wrote in an email.

ODOT Public Information Officer Mandi Dillon said costs for repairs to U.S. 33 would be split between ODOT and Strawser Construction, the contractor who handled the project. Both parties will pay about $50,000 to fix the road because evaluators were unable to determine who was at fault, but Dillon cited the long winter and fluctuating spring weather as possible reasons for the road's condition.

Contractors were scheduled to install microsurfacing material and restripe the edgeline of the roads this week, Dillon said.

In Coldwater, ODOT has determined the village will need to cover any repairs. Dillon said when a project goes through a municipality, the city or village is responsible for providing a base below the asphalt. Prior utility work that village crews had completed created cuts and trenches that weakened the base, she said.

In an email, Thomas wrote that the village will spend about $1,500 to repair eight to 10 of the worst spots during the summer and will wait to see how the rest of the surface holds up.