Public Works Operations Division

The Public Works Operations Division is responsible for the maintenance of City roadways, stormwater management facilities and sidewalks. The Division maintains over 800 lane miles of paved streets. Each year the Division repairs nearly 18,000 potholes, removes and replaces 10,000 linear feet of tree damaged sidewalk, repairs 3,500 linear feet of tree damaged curb, constructs 6,500 feet of new sidewalk and repairs and reconstructs 35 damaged curb inlet structures.

Heavy Equipment Section
Street Sweeping Services

Frequency of Street Sweeping Downtown Area - Swept early in the morning every Monday throughout the year. Additionally, the downtown area around the Plaza and NE 1st Street is swept prior to special events such as the annual Art Festivals and Homecoming Parade. Also, the NW 5th Avenue and 6th Street area by Santa Fe Community College is swept prior to the annual 5th Avenue Arts Festival. Major Collectors/Arterial Roads - Swept once every 4 weeks or as needed. Residential Areas - Residential areas of the city are swept every 4 to 6 weeks, which averages about 9 times annually.

Program Mission: Our mission is to clean city streets as required to provide safe conditions for all modes of transportation. Clean streets will improve air standards and storm water quality services to the citizens of Gainesville.

The City of Gainesville maintains over 800 lane miles of paved roadway. Over 300 of these lane miles have curb and gutter. Curb and guttered streets are the focus of street sweeping activities designed to remove debris that would plug storm drains and cause flooding. City streets are maintained by 4 sweepers and two dump trucks. The sweepers sweep approximately 17,000 miles of residential and arterial roads annually and remove approximately 12,000 cubic yards of debris in the process.

The operating hours for street sweeping are 4:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

Frequently Asked Questions

• When is my street scheduled to be swept?
  There is no set schedule due to interruptions such as equipment repairs, emergencies and weather conditions that makes it impossible to develop a routine sweeping schedule.
• The sweeper was in my area but did not sweep my street. Why was my street missed?
  Occasionally, trash receptacles and parked cars force the sweeper to miss some areas. It would help if trash receptacles are placed just behind the curb. If a street is missed, it is not that critical since they are covered every 4 to 6 weeks depending on the time of the year.

Concrete Section
The City of Gainesville funds 3 concrete crews that maintains and repair curb, sidewalk and curb inlets throughout the year. Most of our efforts are aimed at removing unsafe facilities to prevent accidents and injuries.

Emergency Callout Crew The Streets Division has four employees who are on standby for emergency purposes. Citizens usually notify the Gainesville Police Department at 334-2400 to report any emergencies. Standby personnel are usually called out for the following types of emergencies: Flooding of streets Oil spills Missing manhole lids Cave-ins from leaking storm pipes Trees blocking streets from stormy weather

• Curb & Gutter Construction and Maintenance
  The concrete section removes and replaces about 3,500 lineal feet of curb annually. The repairs are usually required because of damage incurred by tree roots, utility cut-in, or from motor vehicles. Work is generated by input from citizens, Gainesville Regional Utilities or by in-house inspection of Streets Division personnel.
  
  
• Sidewalk Construction & Maintenance
  The concrete section removes and replaces about 10,000 lineal feet of sidewalk annually. The repairs are generated by the same method as curb work. Concrete grinding of raised sidewalk is also being employed to increase response time and prolong the life of the sidewalk before it has to be replaced. Concrete grinding is a very cost-effective method of removing raised areas that are less than one 1 inch.
  
  
• Curb Inlet Construction and Repair
  The concrete section repairs about 35 curb inlets annually. Usually they are crushed by heavy vehicles such as garbage trucks.
  
  

Drainage Section
STORM WATER MANAGEMENT

1. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this document is to describe the procedures and mechanisms that generate maintenance activities of the Drainage Sections in the Streets Division, Public Works Department and the frequency of these activities. It will describe Debris Removal Activities and Procedures and what is typically removed. This document will additionally outline the individual responsible and the records that are kept to document these activities.
2. RESPONSIBLE INDIVIDUAL: The Drainage Crewleader is responsible for the inspections, maintenance and records for all drainage activities in his area of responsibility. The Drainage Section is divided into two areas of responsibility , east and west. The Drainage Section Crewleader schedules and supervises the maintenance operations. When pipe repair or construction is required, the task is turned over to the Construction Drainage Crewleader to perform necessary maintenance and to keep appropriate records.
3. FREQUENCY AND TYPE OF MAINTENANCE ACTIVITY AND INSPECTION:
   1. OPEN WATERCOURSE SYSTEM: This system is composed of Main Watercourses, ROW Road side ditches and swales, Retention and Detention ponds, and watershed flood control systems.
      1. ROUTINE SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE: This type of maintenance accounts for 60% of activity. This process through inspection of system generates additional maintenance activity. Routine maintenance is mowing and cleaning, checking inlets and outfall structures. Other maintenance activities are machine cleaning and excavating; hydroscopes , trackhoes, backhoes, etc. Removing debris and sediments from systems and activities related to erosion control and repair. Scheduled maintenance occurs 4 to 5 times a year.
      2. CITIZEN COMPLAINT AND INQUIRY: This file generates another 30% of activity. Citizens will call before scheduled maintenance occurs or if their concerns were not addressed during scheduled maintenance.
      3. MOSQUITO CONTROL: The elimination of breeding sites generates 10% of activity. Standing water or growth that does not allow for water movement has to be addressed.
   2. CLOSED WATERCOURSE SYSTEM: This system consists of inlets, catch basins , manholes, pipes and outfall structures. Maintenance activity in this system is generated by complaint, inspection and meteorological events.
      1. CITIZEN COMPLAINT AND INQUIRY: Citizens complaints about street flooding and erosion around manholes generates about 20% of maintenance activity.
      2. MOSQUITO CONTROL: This section reporting breeding sites in pipes and manholes usually indicates debris and sediment in the system.
      3. STREET SWEEPING: Areas that have large accumulation of leaves and debris are routinely called in by the sweeper operators during their daily rounds. Their routine is every 4 to 5 weeks.
      4. ROUTINE SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE: Jetting and extracting debris from closed watercourse systems. Construction and repair of concrete structures and appurtenances.
4. RECORDS OF MAINTENANCE ACTIVITY:
   1. WORK MANAGEMENT SYSTEM: All maintenance activity is recorded in this system. Job types, labor and equipment, section and area , production , crewleader and special tracking fields are tracked by this system.
   2. CITIZEN COMPLAINT AND INQUIRY FILE: This file contains all calls that the division receives concerning Streets Division functions and activities.
   3. MOSQUITO CONTROL LOGS: This is a monthly list of all problem areas that this section has investigated. This is routine investigation.
5. DEBRIS REMOVAL:
   1. ROUTINE DEBRIS REMOVAL: This debris removal is done routinely during scheduled maintenance. Cuttings, vegetation and other debris obstructing water flow.
   2. STREET SWEEPING DEBRIS REMOVAL: This debris is first removed by the sweepers and then relocated to a dump site. From our dump sites it is transported for proper disposal.
   3. DITCH CLEANING DEBRIS REMOVAL: Ditch debris is removed from the ditches by machines and transported to the compound where the soil is extracted and placed back on the ditch banks for erosion control.

Asphalt Section
The City of Gainesville is rated one of the tops in the State and Country in the condition of its Roadways. The Public Works Department works hard to insure that our City Roadways are the best they can be by utilizing tax dollars effectively and efficiently.

The Asphalt Section has three primary Maintenance functions.

1. POTHOLE PATCHING
   The Pothole Patch Crew patched 20,000 potholes this year. 300 of these were generated by Citizen Complaint and Inspection the rest were done by Scheduled Maintenance.
   
   
2. ROAD RECONSTRUCTION
   When the Roadway integrity is affected by curb replacement, root damage, sinkholes and Utility cut-ins the Asphalt Cut-in Crew is deployed. This crew has more equipment and personnel to handle these larger volumes of material and work.
   
   
3. RESURFACING PROGRAM
   Resurfacing of selected streets is performed by outside contracts. This work is scheduled and maintained by Asphalt Section personnel.