Pre-Marathon road repair costs compared to all other road repair costs

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

I am looking to understand the cost of road work completed to prepare for the Boston Marathon in 2019 as portion of all road repair work in the city. To help narrow this down, I am interested in the road repair costs on the sections of Washington Street and Commonwealth Ave during the two weeks prior to the 2019 Boston Marathon, April 1 to April 14, 2019. Additionally, I am seeking the total amount spent (or budgeted) for road repair work in the city for the entire fiscal year.

I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as we believe this request is in the public interest, as suggested but not stipulated by the recommendations of the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.

I expect the request to be filled in an accessible format, including for screen readers, which provide text-to-speech for persons unable to read print. Files that are not accessible to screen readers include, for example, .pdf image files as well as physical documents.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Scott Sanders

As requested, the amount spent on the roadways for repairs prior to the Boston Marathon from April 1, 2019 through April 14, 2019 is $36,371.84 for pavement markings which are done generally as needed. We went from thermoplastic to epoxy which will give us a longer lasting lines so that they are not being done every year. We also did pothole repairs which is in our general operations funding in the amount of $10,868.75. Totaling the cost of repairs and maintenance on the Boston Marathon Route roadways to be $47,240.59. Our annual budgeted roadways maintenance and repairs for fiscal year 2019 is 9 million dollars.

The City has finalized its review of your request for public records. A search of all public records in the custody and control of the City reveals that the information above is responsive to your request. There is no charge associated with this request. This completes the City’s response.

In accordance with the state regulations pertaining to public records, you have the right to appeal the response to your request for records to the Supervisor of Public Records pursuant to 950 CMR 32.08.