Public Works updates: winter donations, major overlays and drainage designs coming to Cottonwood Heights

Matt Shipp, the city’s public works department head, gave the City Council a quarterly operations report at the Jan. 6 Cottonwood Heights City Council business meeting. He said the department’s second annual winter donation drive delivered more than 500 pairs of hats, gloves and socks to the Road Home and that staff plan to continue the effort as a tradition. "We received over 500 pair of hats, gloves, and socks that we were able to deliver," Shipp said.

Shipp summarized maintenance metrics and recent capital work. He told the council crews swept more than 4,000 lane miles and collected roughly 375 tons of debris last year, cleaned about 1,800 storm-drain grates and inlets, and placed approximately 350 tons of asphalt on pothole repairs. He said paving and mill-and-overlay work included roughly 150,000 square feet of overlay on Fort Union (a partnership with the Metropolitan Water District), about 63,000 square feet of mill-and-overlay on 1700 East with new sidewalks, and a roughly 240,000-square-foot project in the Union Park area.

Shipp described construction and repair highlights: replacement of a deteriorated culvert on Kings Hill that restored flow and stabilized the roadway; completion of a grant-funded sidewalk on Creek Road that produced continuous pedestrian access in that corridor; and a neighborhood reconstruction project on Stephenson that included new waterways, curb-and-gutter and upgraded storm drains. He said crews also repaired more than 200 trip hazards in the Sundown area this quarter and more than 400 across the city last year.

On stormwater and larger capital projects, Shipp said staff finalized a design for an extensive drainage fix on Stakerway and plan to present construction recommendations to the council. He said the storm-drain master plan is in final draft form and will be brought to council for public hearing and adoption; once adopted, it will guide multi-year expenditures for aging inherited infrastructure. Shipp also described an intersection study for Fort Union and Highland funded with about $2,000,000 from the Wasatch Front that is evaluating a third northbound lane on Highland Drive and potential medians; the study uses UDOT modeling to assess traffic and business impacts.

Shipp told the council the Highland Drive mill-and-overlay (Bangle to Fort Union) is under design for spring construction; he noted that state law requires ADA ramp upgrades when resurfacing or reconstructing streets. He cautioned that small drainage repairs can expand in scope and cost when adjacent sections must be fixed to achieve a durable result.

Council members asked several follow-up questions, including about cost-sharing for median maintenance with partner agencies; Shipp said negotiations are ongoing and that staff will return with a maintenance and reimbursement agreement. He closed by thanking partner agencies and noting more contract and design items will appear at the council retreat and future meetings.

Next steps: staff will return with agreements for median cost-sharing and will present the Highland rehabilitation and storm-drain master plan for council consideration in upcoming meetings.