WORK ON THE STREET Mt. Lebanon will be spending $2.89 million on road reconstruction and resurfacing this year. Niando Construction will do the reconstruction work—reconstruction of nine streets and drainage improvements to three. Youngblood Paving will be resurfacing 10 streets. The bulk of the funding, $1.38 million, comes from Mt. Lebanon’s general fund, with an additional $293,323 from state liquid fuel tax money. The stormwater fund accounts for $766,310 (curbs are an important part of stormwater control), and $743,310 from the general fund pays for resurfacing.

The public works department works with Gateway Engineering, the municipality’s engineering contractor, to compile the list of streets, using Pavement View, a software program that evaluates the condition of each street.

Summer engineering interns survey the conditions of every road in Mt. Lebanon. Other factors to consider are the amount of traffic the street carries, whether it’s a heavily traveled main road, a residential street, dead-end or cul de sac which sees much less traffic; or a collector street, which connects arterials with the other streets. Pavement View also considers the length of time since the street was last repaired, and the street’s physical composition.

Each pavement defect is given a numerical value, which is subtracted from 100 to arrive at the street’s Overall Condition Index (OCI) number. A score of 85 to 100 indicates a street that needs no repair; 60 to 84 calls for minor repairs; 45 to 59 requires major repairs; and an OCI below 45 means that section of street needs major repairs or reconstruction, which involves excavating all layers of the road and rebuilding it.

Utility companies can take advantage of the street opening to replace any deteriorated underground lines.

Even though Mt. Lebanon does not permit overnight parking on the street, if the construction leaves you without the use of your driveway, you will be able to park on nearby streets overnight. Mt. Lebanon will notify the police department of the project, so you will not need to call to request overnight parking permission. The contractor will leave a notice at your front door a few days before construction begins.

View an interactive street repair map at www.mtlebanon.org.

Streets slated for reconstruction are:

Bridgewater DriveSleepy Hollow Road to dead end

Duquesne DriveCedar Boulevard to 437 Duquesne

Elm Spring Road Couch Farm Road to Scrubgrass Road

Hilf Street Castle Shannon Boulevard to Birch Avenue

Lovingston Drive Bridgewater Drive to dead end

Moreland Drive Pembroke Drive to 664 Moreland

Pembroke Drive Oxford Boulevard to Kelso Road

Pinewood Drive Maplewood Drive to 1217 Pinewood

Theodan Drive 1762 to 1790 Theodan

Streets selected for drainage improvements are Bridgewater Drive, Duquesne Drive and Hilf Street.

Streets slated for resurfacing are:

Akron Avenue Overlook Drive to Ralston Place

Audit Way Seneca Drive to Markham Drive

Carleton Drive Bower Hill Road to Elatan Drive

Halsey Court Stilwell Court to cul-de-sac

Hoodridge Intersection Vermont Avenue

Lancaster Avenue Shady Drive East to Merion Drive

Parkview Drive Summer Place to Academy Avenue

S. Meadowcroft Avenue Bower Hill Road to 461 S. Meadowcroft

Woodland Drive Terrace Drive to White Oak Circle

Woodridge Circle Connor Road to Queensbury Circle

SIGNALS UP Have you ever been stopped at a Mt. Lebanon traffic light during a windstorm and just watched the older signals swing on the wires, attached to wooden poles that seem like tiny toothpicks in the breeze?

This spring, new lights went in at Bower Hill Road and Kelso Road, Castle Shannon Boulevard and Anawanda Avenue and Cedar Boulevard and Morgan Drive/Greenhurst Drive, thanks to $925,801 from PennDOT’s Green Light Go grant program. Mt. Lebanon kicked in an additional $231,450 to complete the project.

Not only are signals sturdier and ready for the weather, but the upgrades came with tech features, such as new sensors that detect traffic to help with flow, and battery backup for power outages. This spring’s work is the last of the three-phase project, which improved 30 intersections.

CLEARVIEW COMMON CONCERTS June 7 marks the return of Mt. Lebanon’s First Friday concerts at Clearview Common. The rain may have been an uninvited guest once or twice in the past, but we’re heading into this season with optimism that we can strike an accord with the elements. All First Friday shows are free and are from 7 to 10 p.m.

The theme this year is homegrown, locally sourced music. Arlo Aldo, fronted by Atlanta Drive resident David Manchester, is an alt-folk group that released its third album, Two-Piece Promenade, late last year. You can see their 2016 performance on WQED Sessions at www.pbs.org/video/arlo-aldo-truwut.

On July 5, Grievous Angels, featuring drummer and Lakemont Drive resident Stacy Innerst, will bring its Gram Parsons-infused blend of roots, rock and blue-eyed soul to the stage. Check them out on Bandcamp.

Dan Petrich, Firwood Drive, will close out the series on August 2. Petrich is a singer-songwriter whose songs often feature earthy natural imagery. His second release, Of Devils, Gods and Men, came out last winter. Listen to him discuss his music and hear one of his songs on WYEP’s The Local 913.

And don’t forget about WYEP’s Singer-Songwriter Competition, a four-round contest for local musicians. A preliminary-round concert will be held at the common at 6 p.m., Saturday, August 10.

RECYCLING UPDATE Grad parties, birthday parties, weddings … all those celebrations, all those bottles! Mt. Lebanon residents can no longer recycle glass curbside but we do have lots of free drop-off options: The Pennsylvania Resources Council has teamed with Mt. Lebanon and other local communities to provide drop-off events several times a month. You can take all colors of glass bottles, jugs and jars (caps, lids and labels are fine) to these drop-off locations: June 8, Mt. Lebanon Park (the Commissioners’ Lot); June 22, South Fayette Municipal Building; July 20 and August 10, Village Square Mall in front of Kohl’s; September 14, Dormont Pool and October 12, Mt. Lebanon Park (the Commissioners’ Lot). All events are from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (and if you didn’t notice, they are all on Saturdays). For more information, go to prc.org/glassrecycling.

You can also take glass to Michael Bros. Separate your glass into clear, green and brown/amber colors and drop them off at either location: Baldwin, 901 Horning Road, Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.; or the Reserve location, 408 Hoffman Road, Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Saturday, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Of course, Mt. Lebanon still has a robust curbside pickup of other recyclables. You can still recycle metal cans, paper, cardboard, junk mail and plastics numbered 1 or 2 on the bottom (the only exception are thick black food trays like you get with a sandwich ring.) But please don’t put your recyclables in bags of any kind. They should be loose in any container with a green recycling sticker (available at the customer service center in the municipal building, 710 Washington Road, or the Mt. Lebanon Public Library, 16 Castle Shannon Boulevard). For more information and videos: mtlebanon.org/2385/Curbside-Recycling.