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Eagle Point will take over maintenance of 2 county streets By MELISSA MARTIN EAGLE POINT -- The City Council Tuesday agreed to take two busy streets off Jackson County's hands. Jackson County will pay Eagle Point $506,000 to take over the care of Royal and Shasta avenues, a transaction that will probably take place in four months. "It's a position where the council has said, `We need to step up to our responsibility,"' says David Hussell, Eagle Point city administrator. The two major arterials that carry traffic into and out of Eagle Point will become even busier once the signals are in place at Highway 62, Hussell says. Jackson County will pay the city to take the streets because of the maintenance costs that will shift to the city's shoulders. City Council members discussed what could be done with the county's paycheck. They hope to save $200,000 to match federal funds for building a new bridge over Butte Creek within the next five years. The remaining $300,000 could help pay for repaving Shasta, which is in poor shape, or could be used to build an 8-foot, asphalt pedestrian path to help children walk to school safely. "The council said, `Yes, we'd like to put the pedestrian pathway in. But we need to realistically look at what street improvements are needed,"' Hussell says. "Because crews are digging up the street for the new sewer system, Royal is being rebuilt anyway. But Shasta is left with problems that need to be corrected." Searching for money to repair streets is not a problem unique to Eagle Point, Hussell says. Towns across Oregon are lacking adequate street budgets. "Oregon has not passed any significant legislation to pay for street funding," he says. "There are not a lot of street dollars out there. Cities and counties are stuck with trying to do it with local funds and it boils down to Band-aid maintenance." Streets are expensive to care for because material and labor costs are high, he says. In other action Tuesday, the Eagle Point City Council: Scheduled a second, goal-setting session for noon Wednesday, April 28, at City Hall. Agreed to help pay the salary of Norman Chester, a retired civil engineer who directs traffic and helps young students safely cross the street before and after school. Chester's annual salary of $4,500 will be shared by the Eagle Point School District and city hall, where he also works part-time in the city shop. He was originally employed through Green Thumb, a program that places senior citizens at work sites. "He has developed such a good relationship with students and teachers that we didn't want to lose him," Hussell says. Heard an update on city employees' anticipated move into new headquarters next month. Crews have laid new carpet and vinyl and are setting kitchen and bathroom fixtures in the community hall. Crews are also placing sheetrock, taping, texturing and painting in City Hall. They still need to add insulation, drop the ceilings, install carpet, vinyl and fixtures and paint. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA