Muncie’s public works department is currently focusing on repaving some of the roads around the Ball State area.
The most recent was Wheeling Avenue between Riverside and Neely avenues.
Duke Campbell, superintendent in the department of public works for the city of Muncie, said the department tries to equally divide money among different neighborhoods and the 430 lane miles — the total distance of all the lanes combined — in the city.
“We’ve paved over 100 miles of road in our three years," Campbell said. "The last administration was lucky to get 12 to 14 miles per year."
Even though it has improved from the past, it's still struggling to keep up on potholes, Campbell said.
"However, with a total staff of 20 people at the street department, even running two patchers a day, you can’t really keep up on the potholes,” Campbell explained. “We aren’t caught up and are still running a patcher every day, but we've got a handle on it right now.”
Wheeling still needs to be painted, but it is paved from Muncie’s city limits to Riverside Avenue. For future projects, Campbell said the focus will be in the Ball State area because Wheeling Avenue and Madison Street have been completed.
“Eventually, we’d like to see most of the Ball State area from White River up to McGalliard and from Wheeling to Tillotson and concentrate more money in those areas," Campbell said. "That would probably have to be in the spring when the asphalt place opens back up."
Due to Indiana’s freezing and thawing weather pattern, potholes will always exist, Campbell said. Time is running out to pave roads before the upcoming winter season. The entire process, from repairing drains to paving, takes about four weeks.
Denise Blankenberger, a senior architecture major, lives in a house off of Wheeling Avenue and often drives on the road.
“Before it was paved, it had some potholes like any other road, but it wasn’t awful," Blankenberger. "It’s nice now, though."
People can report a pothole or road resurface and request to fix it here.
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