I wrote about Kentucky Fried Chicken a few months ago for WalletPop, a standard post about how the chain will be serving up grilled chicken to its customers. But I can't quite believe what's now on the KFC menu: fixing potholes.

It's pretty ingenious, really, and it sounds like it may lead to a lot of goodwill.

Basically, KFC has put out a call to the cities of the United States, in effect saying, "If you want us to fix your potholes, let us know." The fast food chain will then pick four cities and fix their potholes. The twist: Each fixed pothole will have, in non-permanent street chalk, a logo that says, "Re-Freshed by KFC."The chain has already started its project in Louisville, Kentucky, which is where Kentucky Fried Chicken is located. The mayor, Jerry Abramson, said in a press release: "Budgets are tight for cities across the country, and finding funding for needed road repairs is a continuing challenge. It's great to have a concerned corporation like KFC create innovative private/public partnerships like this pothole refresh program."

This seems to be part of a marketing that tries to help the public in a meaningful way. Last Christmas, Charmin offered a public restroom in Times Square for the third year in a row, and Samsung has installed electrical charging stations in many airports to help passengers in bad need of an electric outlet. But potholes -- as I said -- pretty ingenious. I'm betting Ronald McDonald is wishing he had thought of it first.