In light of injuries, business owner asks city to address Fourth Street issues

Huntingburg Grind Coffee and Tea owner Chad Brian brought concerns over the condition of Fourth Street to the board of public works after suffering from a fall.

“I took a pretty bad fall yesterday. Just tripped on a loose paver walking from one business to another across the street,” Brian told the board.

He said he ended up falling into one of the concrete planter boxes and sustained injuries to his leg, hip, and shoulder, as well as a finger that required stitches. He told the board that the street continues to deteriorate and asked them to take action to repair it.

“It’s deteriorated. Three years I’ve been in the shop, the street’s gotten substantially worse over the period of time,” Brian told the board. “I believe it’s a safety hazard at this point.”

The configuration of the planter boxes is also a concern. His injuries were exacerbated by hitting the edge of the curb around the boxes. “The corners of the boxes are pretty dangerous,” Brian said, asking if the city could consider rounding them off.

He acknowledged that, despite his injuries, he is more concerned about the older visitors to the downtown area.

Mayor Neil Elkins stated the city has conducted extensive engineering studies on Fourth Street repairs, but has been unable to proceed due to a lack of consensus on funding.

“We’ve engineered the heck out of it. I was ready to move forward with entertaining bids, but I couldn’t get a motion on appropriation of funds,” Elkins said.

The city has approximately $140,000 in available funds from Stellar, he added.

According to an estimate received in August, recompacting the entire street and reinforcing the intersections would cost approximately $425,000.

The board discussed several repair options. The recommended approach is to remove the existing pavers, recompact the rock foundation and then replace the brick pavers. The idea was tabled during August discussions because officials were unsure how long it would last.

Elkins said that during meetings, the engineers stated up to 30 years, but in public meetings with the council, they would only guarantee seven years. However, Elkins said he has spoken with the mayor of Zionsville about the condition of their brick-paved streets, which were recompacted.

“That was done almost 30 years ago. I’ve driven it, it’s in great shape,” Elkins said.

He recommended that the board explore the recompaction option.

Another option under review is to use asphalt for the travel portion of the street, with concrete at intersections where vehicles accelerate and stop most frequently. The paving company indicated they would not guarantee pavers installed over a concrete base, citing concerns about rattling and cracking that could return the street to its current condition.

“These pavers weren’t designed to sit like that on those areas,” he said.

Also, the current brick pavers are permeable, allowing water to drain through them into the underlying stone base and into the drainage system. Converting to asphalt or concrete would direct all surface water to the central drain, potentially overwhelming the existing drainage infrastructure.

“They’re absorbing a lot of water down into the ground right now that would now be shut out towards the sidewalks,” Elkins said.

The board asked why the grated drain runs down the middle of the road if the water isn’t designed to flow into it. Street Superintendent Jason Stamm explained that the road is designed to allow water to permeate the pavers and flow underground into the central drainage area. “Some of it (water) doesn’t make it into that drain,” he told the board.

Board member Dustin Schmett asked whether the asphalt could direct surface water to the center drain, but Stamm wasn’t sure it was sized properly to handle that volume.

City officials indicated they plan to obtain updated cost estimates for asphalt alternatives and will present the information at the next meeting for further consideration.

The discussion concluded with suggestions to involve Fourth Street business owners in the decision-making process before finalizing any repair approach.

“I think we need to get the business owners’ input on Fourth Street first. See what they want,” Boardmember Dustin Schmett said.

Brian expressed hope that the city will prioritize the repairs to ensure continued downtown growth and public safety.

“I think it’s something we need to really look into as a city if we want to continue downtown growth,” he said.

Editor’s note: Added information on the estimate received for recompacting the rock under the pavers.