Central work finished ahead of schedule
The latest phase in the reconstruction
on Central Avenue finished ahead of schedule and repair of another
section is expected to begin this month.
Schellinger Construction finished its
work on the 100 block, the second to last phase of the Whitefish
Downtown Infrastructure Improvements Project, late in May. Later
this month Sandry Construction will repave the street along the 200
block.
Whitefish City Manager Chuck Stearns
said Sandry is expected to begin work Sunday, June 19 and finish up
Wednesday, June 22. Construction will likely take place night and
day.
Stearns said that the oil content of
the asphalt mixture exceeded the city’s specifications. The result
was slumping and depressions in the parking areas of the
street.
“You can see puddles of water or little
depressions on the street,” he said. “It’s the beginning of pot
holes.”
The repairs will be done on warranty at
no cost to the city, Stearns noted.
Schellinger wrapped up its work on the
100 block May 27.
“That went very well,” Stearns
said.
Stearns did report that the striping
sub-contractor applied the parking space striping at the wrong
angle on the west side of Central. It will be restriped at the
contractor’s cost when weather permits.
Schellinger finished ahead of scheduled
and is expected to get a bonus for its work. The contractor is
expected to get the maximum bonus of $40,000 for completing the
work early.
The final phase along the 000 block of
Central Avenue between Railway and First streets is scheduled for
this fall. Work is set to begin Tuesday, Sept. 6.
The Central Avenue work is part of
downtown improvement projects that began in 2009.
Also in the downtown area, work on
Second Street between Spokane and Baker Avenues is expected to
begin. Crews will perform utility and water work in the area. The
work could have an impact on traffic, Stearns noted.
The Second Street work is being funded
by a TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery)
grant funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and is
separate from the Central Avenue project.