Streets Department Explains Sticky Roxborough Situation

The sweltering summer sometimes makes everything feel all hot and gooey. But for Roxborough residents on Hill Road, they're feeling is reality. 

Residents have complained to city officials and local media that tar used to fill cracks in the street is unnecessarily sticky and ultimately pretty gross.

"It has been tracked onto concrete sidewalks and driveways. Almost two weeks later, it is still wet," resident Ed Toland wrote in an email to Patch. "They basically poured too much or it doesn't have a drying agent in it."

Channel 6 recently profiled the sticky tar (see attached video), and Toland said nothing has happened since their June 14 coverage.

On Thursday, the Streets Department said the tar on Hill, Keiffer, Renz and other streets serve as a stop gap before a complete roadwork project commences.

"We are preparing the streets for an asphalt overlay, which will extend the life of the streets," Streets Department spokesperson June Cantor said.

She described the tar substance as a sealer to fill in cracks in the street and along the curb. 

Keisha McCarty-Skelton, another Streets spokesperson, said the sealer is crucial to the ultimate project.

"The sealing is completed as prep work for the asphalt overlay. Without it, the cracks will reflect when the actual overlay is done," she said.

However, before the project continues, residents will be forced to deal with the inconvenience of tracking the tar onto their tires and shoes.

"I had to use BBQ Fluid to remove the heavy build up, but dark stains still appear and the tar still has not dried," Toland said.

Cantor said the project will finish by summer's end.