LOS ANGELES — San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer's fiscal 2016 budget doubles the annual amount the city spends on street repairs to $74 million, according to the mayor's office.
Faulconer pledged during his inaugural state of the city address in January to repair 1,000 miles of streets.
The San Diego mayor joined with City Councilmembers Mark Kersey and Scott Sherman at a press conference Monday as the first mile of street was repaired by road crews.
The repairs will be financed with a combination of cash and bond financing.
In fiscal 2016, which began July 1, $74 million will be spent fixing more than 300 miles of roads, double the amount repaired annually when the mayor took office last year, according to the mayor's office.
"Every journey begins with a first step, and this first mile on the road to fixing 1,000 is the latest step we're taking to make sure City Hall is putting our neighborhoods first," Faulconer said in a prepared statement. "We're increasing the amount of street repair we do because this is what San Diegans are asking for. Every community needs better streets, and my goal is to make sure they get them."
Councilmember Kersey, chair of the City Council's Infrastructure Committee said: "We are on our way to repairing a third of our city streets over the next five years."
City Council President Sherri Lightner, who also supports the budgetary focus on street repair, said, "If there is anything that San Diegans are passionate about it's their streets, so it's encouraging to see these projects already being completed."
Data from the most recent street survey in 2011 revealed that 35% of San Diego's streets were in good condition, 40% were in fair condition and 25% were in poor condition. The city is currently studying the condition of streets to see how they've changed since 2011 with the results expected by December.
