PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A routine street patching job in one city neighborhood is literally peeling apart at the seams. Now, officials with the city say crews will fix the problem.

Neighbors say the city did less of a patch job and more of a hack job on Cox Avenue in Lincoln Place.

“It is hot as can be. What, are we going to have to wait for this to all peel up on our cars, shoes, our dog’s feet because we can’t even go outside with this getting caught up on something,” said Barb Pribila, a neighbor who is upset over the patching job.

Public Works Director Rob Kaczorowski admits that crews didn’t properly clear out cracks in the concrete before filling them again. It’s a fairly new technique, one used for about a year or two.

“Obviously, the emulsion was not going to stick to dirt and loose impediments and the area was too big for emulsion. It should have been prepped, patched and sealed,” said Kaczorowski. “We made some mistakes.”

The material is coming up in chunks, so much so that an entire strip of sealant came up on someone’s tire. There is also a pile of the material that people collected. They say it came up under their tires.

Kaczorowski says crews will go back when rain is out of the forecast to redo the work. He says it is something he hopes won’t happen again.

“They were notified, reprimanded. It’s unfortunate. I apologize and when it’s done properly, it will save taxpayers a lot of money,” said Kaczorowski.

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