Work on 10th Ave. to run through October

The city plans to begin work on the removal and replacement of the deteriorating pavement on 10th Ave. between Osage St. and Illinois St. today.

This project involves improvements to the storm sewers along 10th Ave., in order to improve drainage and limit flooding on the roadway. It will also include replacing the outer portion of the sidewalk on that stretch of road to align with ADA compliance, according to public services director John Hehnke.

The project will be completed in phases, with traffic re-routed from 10th Ave. to 13th Ave. around the section on which construction is being performed at that time. The city plans to begin work on the second and fourth phases today, to be completed in mid-July.

Work in the second phase covers the stretch of 10th Ave. from between Maple and Newton to between Linden and King. The fourth phase will go from Jackson to Illinois.

The city plans to begin on phases one and three in mid-July and finish those in mid-September. Phase one of the project will go from Osage to between Newton and Maple. The third phase will go from between Linden and King to Jackson.

During each phase, the city will first remove the street and excavate, upgrade the storm sewer, lay the concrete pavement and then replace the outer sections of sidewalk. The city plans to have the entire project finished by mid-October at the latest.

The city hopes that the street closure and detours will have minimal impact on 10th Ave. businesses, which will lose their street parking and the outer half of their sidewalks during phases of construction on the stretch of street in front of their businesses.

“You’ll still be able to access all businesses from the front, it’s just you’ll only have half of the sidewalk,” Hehnke said.

Patrons of 10th Ave. businesses can park in the city parking lots behind the Coffee Corner off of Jackson St., as well as at the Hickory St. lot.

“A lot of times all the parking stalls on the adjacent streets are usually full,” Hehnke said.

This project has been in the works since 2012 due to a lengthy federal aid process. The road will be entirely replaced with concrete pavement.

This road work will eliminate costly ongoing road maintenance, according to the city.

This federal aid project has a total price tag of around $1.3 million, but the state pays 80 percent of the cost while the city pays 20 percent.

“It’s going to be a hardship,” said Jim Holechek, owner of Holechek funeral home which is located along the construction route.

During the time the portion of road in front of the funeral home is closed the owners will have to re-think how patrons get in and out of the home for a service. Even though it will be inconvenient, hopefully this project will alleviate problems with storm water backing up into the grass in front of his business, Holechek said.