BY JENNIFER BAILEY
DANVILLE — Another sign of spring: construction projects sprouting up.
That’s the case downtown with the start this week of the Hazel Street downtown pedestrian access improvements.
City Engineer David Schnelle said as soon as winter weather broke, Big O Services of Tilton was to start on the project. Work this week included cuts to allow curb and sidewalk areas to be removed, and vault work, Schnelle said. The six vaults, under sidewalks, will be filled in and the walls will be strengthened.
“They’ll do the west side of the street first, then the east side later,” he said.
Schnelle said the sidewalks will be intermittently closed during the project.
Two-way traffic on Hazel Street will be maintained for a majority of the project, but there will be periods of time the street may be closed off at certain points, he added.
The city will keep the public posted. The project will continue until June.
There was some controversy with the project due to the city spending its gas tax funds on it, and the need for the project.
Schnelle said the Hazel Street project fulfills the intent of the gas tax funding for infrastructure improvements.
Schnelle said because of city-received stimulus funding, it’s freed up about $246,000 in Community Block Development Program funds and the city also had about $200,000 in additional local gas tax funds for the improvements.
The $408,025 contract with Big O Services is for the first phase of the Hazel Street pedestrian access improvements between North and Main streets.
The project involves replacing existing deteriorated sidewalk, and it also has been designed to improve the appearance of Hazel Street by:
-- Decreasing the pavement width by moving the existing curb lines in.
-- Installing plantings, trees, shrubs, perennials, grasses, ground cover and grass in the newly created buffer strips by decreasing the width of Hazel Street.
-- Removing existing concrete and steel light poles and replace with ornamental style light poles matching those of Main and Vermilion streets.
-- Reworking the city-owned parking lot across the street from Vermilion Place to make it meet current landscaping ordinance requirements and ADA requirements.
-- Increasing the sidewalk width around Vermilion Place and the Gold Rush Pawn Shop to provide for their activities.
-- Creating pedestrian curb bump outs and cross walks at Van Buren to cross Hazel, and all four corners of North and Hazel streets.
-- Installing ADA curb ramps at all streets and alleys.
The initial project scope was just to remove and replace sidewalk.
Schnelle said after meeting with stakeholders in the downtown area, it was decided to make a “green” project by including the landscaping that will have the long-term impact of beautifying the street and improving the pedestrian experience.
Downtown property owner Marie Pribble has said she’s “thrilled” about the improvements.
