Turlock City Council OKs road repairs for Fulkerth

TURLOCK -- The City Council approved a bid to begin fixing pothole-strewn Fulkerth Road and amended its current fiscal year budget to reflect $1.4 million in savings.

During Tuesday night's meeting, the board awarded an $884,488 bid to Watsonville's Granite Construction Co. for the Fulkerth Road Rehabilitation project, from Highway 99 to Golden State Boulevard.

The project will be the first in Turlock to use rubberized asphalt technology. The rubberized asphalt uses recycled tires and cuts down on waste. The rubberized asphalt also is supposed to last longer, be quieter and require less maintenance. The city received a $122,500 grant from CalRecycle to use the special rubberized asphalt.

The city also appropriated $28,620 to survey the condition of the pavement on city streets. The repairs and studies come a week after Mayor John Lazar proposed during his State of the City address a road tax to help maintain the city's ailing roadways.

The council also amended its 2012-13 general and nongeneral budgets to reflect some $1.4 million in expense reductions. That includes $1 million in savings in health care costs, but also a $380,000 shortfall in property tax revenue.

The council took several other actions:

• Entered into a $270,025 loan with the Stanislaus County Affordable Housing Corp. to purchase a fourplex at 1060 Alpha to be used to create affordable housing.

• Increased garbage bill late-fee charges from $10 to $25. The change brings the utility late fee on par with others like water and sewer.

• Created the position of assistant to the city manager for economic development-community housing. It was created to combine the existing community housing program services manager and economic development-redevelopment manager. Former Economic Development-Redevelopment Manager Heidi McNally-Dial retired earlier this year. Current Community Housing Program Services Manager Maryn Pitt will fill the newly created position beginning March 1.

• Finalized its plan to shift its regular meeting time from 7 p.m. to 6 p.m. The earlier start time begins with the April 9 meeting.

Council members also met in closed session with counsel to discuss the Daniel Mendonca v. City of Turlock case involving Bolt the dog. The Alaskan malamute was deemed "vicious" and slated to be put down by the city after biting two women last year. Nothing was reported out of the session. A hearing on the case is slated for March 8 in Stanislaus Superior Civil Court.

Bee staff writer Marijke Rowland can be reached at mrowland@modbee.com or (209) 578-2284. Follow her on Twitter: @turtleneck.