The City of Bloomington will pay local highway contractor Crider & Crider $1,520 a day to help fill potholes left by flooding last week.
The National Weather Service reports nearly five and half inches of rain fell near Bloomington last Thursday, followed by a deep freeze overnight that caused cracks and potholes to widen.
A statement from Mayor John Hamilton's office says recently-filled potholes were also dislogded.
The city's street crews filled 647 potholes last week, according to the statement. The Crider & Crider crews will work with city crews to speed up repair over the next four or five days, for a total cost of between $6,000 and $7,600.
The Public Works Department will soon have access to a new aslphalt hot box reclaimer, which was already on order before the storm.
"The hot box heats asphalt to recommended temperatures and maintains them until the asphalt is used, which accelerates and improves wintertime pothole repairs," the statement says. "Lacking this apparatus, Public Works regularly deployed the 'cold patch' pothole repair method, which produces less resilient repairs."
The device cost $28,484 and was a planned part of the 2019 budget.
