City backing away from paving proposal

SEMINOLE, Okla. (AP) -- The red brick streets of Seminole won't be disappearing under a layer of asphalt. <br><br>The city has backed away from a state offer to widen and pave a two-block section

Monday, June 12th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SEMINOLE, Okla. (AP) -- The red brick streets of Seminole won't be disappearing under a layer of asphalt.

The city has backed away from a state offer to widen and pave a two-block section of U.S. 270 in downtown. Merchants and residents say the brick streets give the city a historical flavor.

"These streets were laid brick-by-brick," said Evelyn Hammond, director of the Seminole County Historical Society. "They've lasted 70 years and would probably last another 300."

The Oklahoma Historical Society has recommended that the streets not be paved because the downtown is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places and removal of the bricks would hurt the district's eligibility.

Mayor Vicki Spears said the community will have to live with the road dips and sags that have developed at Broadway and Main, the city's busiest intersection.

"The locals know to slow down," Spears said. "It's the ones from out of town that get surprised."