With the snow melting and Ramsey County’s streets revealed as somewhat less than stellar driving conditions, residents may wonder what long-term plans there are to fix them with something more permanent than a hot patch.

Here’s a list of this year’s major St. Paul and Ramsey County street projects.

THE RULES

Two categories are in play — total reconstruction and “mill and overlay.”

Total reconstruction means tearing up the whole street, down to the pipes underneath, and often replacing some of those pipes as well.

“Mill and overlay,” on the other hand, is grinding off the top two inches of asphalt — that’s the “mill” part — and then replacing it with a fresh two inches of asphalt. A “milled” road can still be driven on, albeit carefully: the tops of drains and manholes poke above the ground-down surface, creating a hazard.

While much easier (and faster) to do, the typical lifespan of a mill and overlay can be from as few as five years to more than 10, depending on the condition of the “base” that was beneath the asphalt, according to St. Paul city engineer Paul Kurtz.

Projects on the list are slated to begin after April and wrap up by October. Unless otherwise stated, all projects are mill and overlay.

A few final details: The list focuses primarily on streets, rather than bridge projects. Some county road projects include bike lanes, notably White Bear Avenue and Payne Avenue in St. Paul, and Edgerton Street in Little Canada and Vadnais Heights.

ST. PAUL DOWNTOWN

This year is the first of a three-year special project to repave St. Paul’s downtown. The mill and overlay effort will include some sidewalks and corners — “concrete work,” as the city calls it.

The $3.5 million project will start on the east side of downtown — the Lowertown area by CHS Field — from Broadway Street, all the way to Jackson Street, which was fully reconstructed last year.

The north and south borders of the project are Kellogg Boulevard and 10th Street. Roughly a quarter of the area will get new sidewalks. A map of the project can be found online on the city’s Public Works page.

The project is expected to start next month, with the city milling and repaving it in portions.

An estimate of the assessments — property owners pay for half of the mill and overlay work and all of the sidewalk work — has yet to be calculated, city officials said.

OTHER MAJOR ST. PAUL PROJECTS

In addition to the downtown project, the city spends about $2.7 million a year on mill and overlay. This year the projects (again, with a timeline of April through October) include:

Arlington Avenue, from East Shore Drive to White Bear Avenue

Cleveland Avenue, from Itasca Avenue to Mississippi River Boulevard

Pascal Street, from University Avenue to St. Anthony Avenue

Prior Avenue, from Marshall Avenue to Interstate 94

St. Clair Avenue, from Fairview Avenue to Snelling Avenue

Energy Park Drive, from Minnesota 280 to east of Raymond Avenue

Payne Avenue, from Seventh Street to Edgerton Street

White Bear Avenue, from I-94 to Upper Afton Road

In addition to the mill and overlay, St. Paul will conduct a few full-street reconstruction projects, including:

Wheelock Avenue, from Western Avenue to Rice Street

The Dale Street bridge project over I-94, which stretches from University Avenue to Iglehart Avenue

MAPLEWOOD/ROSEVILLE

Century Avenue, from Carver Avenue to Linwood Avenue

County Road C — a major project that will include full reconstruction from the west county line to Long Lake Road and resurfacing from east of Cleveland Avenue to Minnesota 51

Larpenteur Avenue, from Hazel Street to Minnesota 120

Lexington Avenue, from County Roads C2 to E

LAUDERDALE/FALCON HEIGHTS

Larpenteur Avenue, from Minnesota 280 to west of Snelling

VADNAIS HEIGHTS/LITTLE CANADA

NEW BRIGHTON/ST. ANTHONY

Silver Lake Road, from County Road D to Interstate 694

WHITE BEAR TOWNSHIP