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Sidewalk repair includes protection of trees By Jessica Smith Workers are busy repairing sidewalks in a historic east Medford neighborhood, a year after some in the community questioned whether the project should get federal assistance. Last week, crews began ripping out sections of the sidewalks on Geneva and Minnesota avenues where expansive tree root systems have lifted the concrete. Work is expected to wrap up by Oct. 31. About a year ago, the $50,000 project came under fire when the West Medford Community Coalition disputed the city�s decision to redirect federal Housing and Urban Development funds from a west Medford project to the historic neighborhood. The city stuck with its plan, applying $26,440 in federal aid to the Geneva-Minnesota project. Construction held over, however, because bids came in higher than expected, public works officials said. HUD funds will cover the additional cost. The impressive catalpas, elms, and maples lining Geneva and Minnesota contributed to the higher costs. The root systems that broke through the sidewalks must be protected to preserve the trees, according to engineers. "We�re trying to keep away from as many tree roots as possible," said Mike Stanley, a city engineering inspector who is supervising the Geneva-Minnesota project. "We want to save everything we can." Crews will work around the trees, bumping the sidewalk around tree bases where necessary and elevating the concrete to accommodate the roots. A few trees are dead, however, and need replacing. Dead trees pose a significant liability to the city and must be removed, Stanley said. To cover construction costs related to the trees and their roots, the public works department applied a portion of its 2000-01 HUD funds to the project. Critics last year knocked the city for using a federal grant to fix sidewalks on streets where homes sell for as much as $200,000 to $300,000, although Geneva and Minnesota technically qualify for HUD funds. The streets are part of a larger neighborhood where at least 51 percent of the households have moderate or low incomes. City officials explained then that they took the 1999 HUD funds, originally set aside to build and repair sidewalks on West Eighth Street between Elm and Orange streets, and gave them to Geneva-Minnesota to keep the projects in the right order. Geneva-Minnesota sidewalks were to be repaired in 1998 with HUD funds, but a project on King Street absorbed all the money available. Of the $112,500 in federal aid given to the city in the past two years, $62,500 is set aside to build and repair sidewalks on West Eighth Street. Public works officials say that project is scheduled for spring 2001. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA