City planning March bid-letting for Southwest 38th Street upgrade

Repairs to Southwest 38th Street will be under way by spring, if Ward 4 Councilman George Gill has his way.

Gill, who chairs the City Council’s Streets and Bridges Committee, has been pushing a project that has been on the city staff’s radar for several years: Southwest 38th Street between Bishop Road and West Gore Boulevard. The northern mile of the road — between West Gore and West Lee boulevards — is in especially bad shape, particularly near Cameron University, and the upgrade had been identified as a street rebuild project.

But in October, council members agreed to move the project to the repair category, meaning it will be addressed under the city’s mill and overlay program. That program lessens costs for street upgrades by grinding off the top layer of asphalt and applying a new layer, with some repair work done before new asphalt is applied. Gill said the process would significantly lessen the cost. More importantly, mill and overlay would take what would be a two-year reconstruction project down to about six months.

Chris Serrano, with the city’s consulting engineering firm WSB, said engineers have set an estimate of $5.6 million on the one-mile project, which would include the mill and overlay as well as rebuilding some segments that are severely deteriorated because the base has failed. It also would include some curb and gutter work, and council members have indicated a sidewalk on at least one side of the road is in the plan.

Serrano said the end result will be a definite increase in rideability for vehicular traffic.

Serrano said engineers want to bid the project in March, which could mean the project could get under way by April, but that would depend on sequencing. He said the project must be done in phases because complete closure isn’t an option. There are multiple areas — the Comanche County Tag agency complex just south of the railroad tracks is one; Cameron University’s westside ballfields are another — where access is available only from Southwest 38th Street.

Serrano said while the upgrade could be done much more quickly if the road could be completely closed, those entities must be considered when the lane work begins, which means a multi-phase project.

Gill said mill and overlay is a viable option for the roadway, explaining the anticipated lifespan of the road after that work is done is five to 10 years. He said additional time is a definite possibility as the City of Lawton implements a dedicated streets maintenance program that is possible because of permanent funding for streets and bridges contained in the Capital Improvements Program Extension.

Gill also said cost is a factor. Completely rebuilding Southwest 38th Street was estimated at $20 million when the project was first set in 2017, a figure Gill estimated has increased to $30 million in today’s dollars. And, that project from beginning to end could be up to three years, compared to the six months that engineers estimate for mill and overlay.

Three engineering firms have confirmed mill and overlay is a viable option, said Gill, who also has an engineering background.

Serrano said all work will all be done “within the existing footprint,” meaning there won’t be any extra construction or right of way necessary and no need to move utility lines. However, he said there will have to be discussion with railroad officials because state statue requires Lawton to pay a right of way entry fee to the railroad that owns the tracks, and that will have to be negotiated.

Gill said he plans to introduce the recommendation to the full council on Jan. 28, action that also will identify the project’s funding source. Serrano said approval would allow the project to go out for bids in early March.