WINTER GARDEN, Fla. – Pavement starting to float from high groundwater is the costly problem facing leaders in Winter Garden.
This week, the Winter Garden City Commission voted to approve just over $157,000 for crews to install roadway underdrains in the Valencia Shores neighborhood, after residents voice what they were seeing with ‘worsening’ road conditions.
David Daffron has lived in Valencia Shores for more than 30 years. But when he looks at the road in front of his home, he sees crack after crack.
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“When I first moved here, it didn’t seem as bad as it is now,” Daffron said. “You can tell that something is not right with it.”
The subdivision, developed in the 70s, has recently experienced unexpected pavement problems. According to City Engineer Jim Monahan, the issue goes deeper than surface-level cracks.
“The roadway was recently resurfaced, and the pavement is now starting to float from high groundwater,” Monahan said during this week’s commission meeting.
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He says normally, pavement can last up to 20 years. However, goes on to say just one year after resurfacing, the new pavement has already begun to buckle and slide.
“The old pavement allowed the water to drain through the cracks in the pavement, and the new pavement is crack-free, so the water has come up underneath the pavement,” Monahan explained.
Daffron says when cars drive down the street, something from beneath the roadway pushes up through the cracks, causing even more damage.
“When cars go down the road, the underline or possibly sand down there comes up through the cracks and we get more cracks,” he said.
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After hearing from residents’, commissioners approved funding to issue a purchase order to TD Thomson Construction Inc. in the amount of $157,595 for a roadway underdrain in Valencia Shores Subdivision.
“The underdrains are a pipe that runs on the sides of the road,” Monahan said. “It will take us about a month to get it installed. It will take the groundwater and keep it low.”
Daffron says he’s glad the problem will soon be addressed but hopes the repairs won’t cause too much disruption.
“I would hate to see them rip up a lot of stuff just to fix it,” he said.
City officials say not all of the pavement will need to be removed. Crews plan to replace sections of the thin asphalt coating underneath, and residents will not be cut off from their homes during the work.
News 6 is planning on continuing with follow up questions next week.
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