OVERNIGHT PAVINGS
SCHEDULED
ON 3-BLOCK SECTION
OF CUMBERLAND AVENUE
A series of overnight pavings along a three-block section
of Cumberland Avenue, starting at 9 p.m. today (Tuesday, Aug. 2), will
establish the roadway at its correct new height while providing better access
to the entrances of businesses.
The carefully-sequenced series of pavings – involving the
future westbound lane of Cumberland and closures of one-block sections of 19th,
20th and 21st streets north of Cumberland – will take
place over three consecutive nights. The paving work is the latest development
in the City’s $17 million reconstruction of the seven-block main stretch of
Cumberland Avenue.
The first closure begins tonight. From 9 p.m. today until 6
a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 3, North 21st Street between Cumberland and
White avenues will be closed while Southern Constructors Inc. crews pave the
westbound lane of Cumberland from 21st Street east toward 22nd
Street.
The side streets are being connected with Cumberland at its
new elevation, so about 30 feet of North 21st Street also will be
paved as the new connection is made.
North 21st Street will be closed overnight
during the paving; motorists may use either 20th or 22nd
streets as alternative routes. Cumberland Avenue will remain open to both
westbound and eastbound traffic.
Next, the paving work will cascade eastward and follow the
same pattern. From 9 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 3, until 6 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 4,
North 20th Street will be closed between Cumberland and White
avenues. Crews will pave the westbound lane of Cumberland from North 20th
toward 21st Street.
A short section of North 20th will be paved as
well. While North 20th is closed overnight, motorists may use 19th
or 21st streets as alternative routes. Just like on Tuesday night,
Cumberland will remain open to both westbound and eastbound traffic.
Finally, from 9 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 4, until 6 a.m. Friday,
Aug. 5, North 19th Street will be closed between Cumberland and
White avenues. The westbound lane of Cumberland will be paved from 19th
Street toward 20th Street. Cumberland will remain open, and 20th
and 18th streets are alternate routes.
“This paving is a small step in the overall project, but
the Cumberland Corridor merchants, restaurants and their customers will
definitely find it interesting,” said Anne Wallace, the City’s Deputy Director
of Redevelopment who’s managing the Cumberland Avenue reconstruction project.
“While work will be continuing in these blocks, this will give people a better
glimpse of what the new-and-improved Cumberland will look like.
“First of all, the new asphalt is replacing a gravel lane,
so the entrances to businesses are being improved.
“Second, on the north side of Cumberland between 19th
and 22nd streets, you’ll be able to more easily visualize the
finished streetscape – the new westbound traffic lane, the wide new decorative
sidewalk, and the silva cells, where new trees will be planted next year.”
The complete project will be finished in about a year. The
City’s investment in infrastructure and streetscape upgrades will create a more
attractive, safer, pedestrian-friendly and better-functioning Cumberland Avenue
Corridor.
Utilities are being upgraded from Alcoa Highway to 17th
Street. The existing four-lane Cumberland between 22nd and 17th
streets is being reconfigured to a three-lane cross section with a raised
median and left-turn lanes at intersections.
An earlier
phase of work on the western end of Cumberland focused on improving traffic
flow between the Alcoa Highway ramps and 22nd Street; that phase
finished at the end of 2015, on time and under budget.
Cumberland Avenue Merchants Association (CAMA) - Monthly Meeting
Date: Wednesday, August 3
Time: 3:00 - 4:00 pm
Location: Copper Cellar, 1807 Cumberland Avenue
What: The merchants and other interested stakeholders meet to discuss items of interest or concern and get updates on the City's Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project.
Parking: Available parking is located at Copper Cellar.
