Local residents who are concerned about the deplorable condition of Lawrence streets should keep an eye on an audit approved Tuesday night by Lawrence city commissioners.

Among the topics City Auditor Mike Eglinski was instructed to look into during the coming year was how the city builds new streets and maintains its old ones. Eglinski proposed a performance audit that would compare the city’s construction and maintenance specifications and practices with those in other cities.

The audit was suggested, at least partially, in response to a 2007 citizen survey that indicated considerable concern about the embarrassing condition of Lawrence streets. Even a cursory look around Lawrence today confirms that concern is justified.

Among the questions Lawrence residents are asking: Why are some relatively new streets in such poor shape? Are Lawrence streets lasting as long as they should? At what point is the city simply throwing good money after bad by patching streets rather than rebuilding them?

After Chuck Soules took over the public works department in 2002, new construction standards were put into place that should improve streets over the long run and avoid problems the city is encountering, for instance, on Wakarusa Drive. Under the new standards, the city more often is using concrete over asphalt construction that should last 30 years without major repairs, far longer than Wakarusa Drive, which was built directly on Kansas clay that shrinks and expands creating cracks and potholes.

The current condition of streets in Lawrence naturally leads local residents to question whether the city has always made the best decisions when it comes to construction, standards, inspections and maintenance. They also want to make sure that revenue from the new 0.3 percent sales tax they approved a year ago for additional street work is being well spent, not only to address the city’s most urgent street needs but to ensure the integrity of the street system over the long haul.

The city’s public works department seems headed in the right direction on streets, but it never hurts for someone outside the department to take a look at how other cities are doing things. Sometimes a relative outsider can get a fresh perspective on problems facing the city and perhaps find a better, more efficient or less expensive way to deal with those problems.

It will be interesting to see what Eglinski’s audit comes up with. He’s right that Lawrence residents are concerned about our city streets. Both taxpayers and city officials should welcome any insight on how to improve construction or maintenance practices.