It’s hard to argue with the “war on blight” Mayor Brian Stratton has declared in the city of Schenectady: Scores of houses are in such dilapidated condition that the wrecking ball is the only practical solution. While there are some safety issues involved, e.g. fires, the problem is primarily an aesthetic one. Still, the mayor wants to spend $875,000 — $725,000 more than last year — to remedy it, at the same time he’s cut corners on a program that not only touches on aesthetics, but safety and money as well: roads. Schenectady’s 180 miles of roads are in ever rougher condition. And it’s not just the current pothole season, which, thanks to the rainy-followed-by-freezing weather, seems to have produced a bumper crop of axle-snappers. Years of neglect and slipshod patching by the city, as well as by paving contractors hired by plumbers and utilities, have made it hard to find smooth road anywhere any time. That is, unless it’s one of the few random streets in recent years lucky enough to have qualified for the city’s Cadillac treatment — sidewalks, curbstones and all. At a cost of $300,000 per block, the city can’t afford too many of those. But there will be even fewer this year, as it has cut the streetpaving budget from $5 million to $4 million. Crater-sized potholes not only ruin tires, wheels and front-end parts — all of which cost hundreds to replace — they can cause accidents, either by rendering the cars themselves unsafe or the motorists who take evasive action to avoid them. The mayor needs to rethink his priorities a bit on this one, or look for additional funding sources.
Speaking of pot holes, I took my mom for blood work on Union Street the other day. The pot holes are awful and everywhere. I don't know how I didn't either get in an accident by trying to avoid them or having my car swallowed up in one.
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