Brookline Court is one of the bumpiest streets in the City of
Bradford and residents are asking for some relief from a plague of
potholes.

On Monday, Valerie Mark, executive director of the Bradford
Housing Authority, explained that relief is on the way.

First she explained that the street belongs to the Housing
Authority and not the City of Bradford, and acknowledged that
Brookline Court is in really rough shape.

“It’s terrible … it’s so rough,” Mark said.

“We’re going to repave the whole thing,” she said. “The first ad
went in Friday’s paper.”

A pre-bid conference with prospective contractors will be held
at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the Housing Authority office to discuss the
scope of and requirements for the project. Bids will be opened at
10 a.m. Sept. 3.

Mark explained other activities included in the full project are
new furnaces for the residences on Brookline Court; the sidewalk in
Jan Hamilton Memorial Park will be widened for wheelchair
accessibility; and new windows for the Housing Authority homes on
Brookline Court and South Center Street are included as well.

“I don’t know if they can all be fit in, but we’re going to
try,” Mark said.

She explained that a few years back, the agency re-did its
five-year plan to incorporate the paving on Brookline Court, as the
street keeps growing steadily worse.

“Thank heavens we put that in a while back,” she said, adding
that the street deteriorated quite rapidly this year.

“We’ve been working on it for over a year,” she explained.

“We’ve been waiting for funding,” Mark said. That money came
through with the federal stimulus package, which in turn helps the
Housing Authority to address as many issues as possible in its
capital fund program.

Referring to the paving, Mark said, “It’s going to be
expensive.”

She added that it is necessary that the paving be done, and
hopes it can be accomplished with a month or so.