Harlingen crews preparing for street paving project
Related Story
Nearly two dozen streets across Harlingen will be repaved by the city’s new in-house street repaving crew.
The new crew will save the city nearly half of what they currently spend on asphalt alone, officials said.
“The major savings will be in the profit that we don't have to pay to a contractor, and also the materials,” Harlingen City engineer Luis Vargas said. “We'll save approximately 30% in material purchases, and we also won't have to pay that 10 to 15% of profit to another company.”
On average, the city has spent nearly $2 million every year paying someone else to do street repair work.
City commissioners approved creating the new in-house street crew in September. The city is expected to spend $600,000 every year on the crew of 10 people.
The purchase of equipment cost the city nearly $3 million.
Watch the video above for the full story.