BUTLER TWP — The township commissioners on Monday decided to pave about 30 streets that were tar and chipped last year, but turned out to be defective with a barrage of tiny stones being kicked up from vehicles.

At that time the commissioners said last year's overall road maintenance project, which included both paving and tar and chip, was the most ambitious in the township's history.

The new paving work will start within a week, Commissioner Joseph Cavaliero said.

Last year, Russell Standard of Mars was awarded a $126,932 contract to tar and chip the roads.

The commissioners voted to award another contract to Russell Standard to pave the roads. The company's bid of $329,574 for the paving was the lowest of two received.

Russell Standard agreed to discount that price by $79,227 because of last year's problems, township officials said.

So the cost to the township this year will be $250,347.

"It was a waste of $126,000," said Jeff Campbell of Havenhill Road, one of the streets involved. "It would have been cheaper just to pave them in the first place, and everybody would have been happier."

Last October, Campbell presented commissioners with a petition he said was signed by 130 residents protesting the condition of their streets.

After he presented the petition at the Oct. 17 meeting, Campbell said using tar and chip, also known as seal coat, was "a cheap way out instead of paving the roads."

Joseph Hasychak, chairman of the commissioners, told him paving the roads would have cost about $19,000 more.

"I'd love to pave every road in Butler Township, but that's impossible,"Hasychak said at the meeting last year.

Hasychak said he drove on the streets after they had been tar and chipped and "stones were flying up under my car."

He said all of the streets were swept twice, and some three times.

"They dumped a massive amount of chips onto the roads," Campbell had told commissioners. He said they were being scattered onto people's lawns and into their flower beds.

"The chip that they used is a very sharp chip," he said. "They stick in your tires, and when you get on a highway, they get released and chip cars."

Campbell wasn't the only one complaining at the meeting.

"I'm very disappointed with what's going on," said Bill Kredel, also of Haven Hill Road.

"Today I cut my grass," John Russo of Farmington Drive said. "I had stones flying everywhere."

Despite the additional cost this year to pave the streets, Campbell was pleased with the outcome.

"That's good news," he said.

Campbell said the chips are gone from the road.

"There's nothing but tar now," he said.

In 2005, all or portions of 39 roads were slated for paving, 34 for tar and chip, and a sealer and rejuvenator applied to 10.

"That's close to a quarter of the roads in the township," Hasychak had said.

Contracts were awarded totaling $640,636, although some changes were made, township manager Gerald Patterson Jr. said, so the total might have varied from the original contracts.

Also, six roads were added later to the paving list. The Butler Township Area Water and Sewer Authority contributed $350,000 to help fund the project.

A list of the streets to be paved this summer was unavailable Monday evening.

Monday afternoon, Patterson said he did not have a copy of the paving list. Fred Spohn, the road supervisor, returned a message from his home and said he didn't have the list with him.

Commissioners Cavaliero and Hasychak said they didn't have a copy.

A township secretary said she didn't have access to the list.