Broadway to close to traffic from Main to Spanish for two weeks, contractor says

Broadway will close to traffic from Main to Spanish streets for about two weeks starting today as contractors continue to construct Cape Girardeau's $4.5 million Broadway corridor project. The closure will be just the first of several along the heavily traversed Broadway as Fronabarger Concreters move the project westward to Pacific Street between now and its target completion date of Nov. 5.

The Oak Ridge-based construction company is closing the block from Main to Spanish streets, including the intersection, for about two weeks as it works on the intersection of Spanish and Broadway, vice president David McMullin said.

"This intersection is where the first part of the streetscaping starts," McMullin said. "The nitty-gritty."

Since April 9, Fronabarger has been working on the two-block stretch that runs from Water Street to Spanish Street, which is the only section that does not include the project's north-side 15-foot-wide sidewalk. Since that date, McMullin said, they have put in new sidewalks and curb and gutters. By the end of this week, most of the work for those two blocks will be complete except for the intersection, he said.

The intersection work will include installing pavers, crosswalks, tree planter boxes and other amenities, McMullin said, marking the first visible signs of the expansive vision of city leaders, who tout the project as a streetscape "promenade" that they say will be a major improvement to precede the completion of the $125 million casino under construction just a few blocks away down Main Street.

But Fronabarger won't be just working on the intersection for the next two weeks. McMullin said starting today, crews will be working on taking out existing sidewalks from Spanish Street to Lorimier Street. That stretch is also the starting point for the new extended sidewalk on the north side, although parallel parking will remain on the south side.

Once the intersection of Broadway and Spanish Street is done, McMullin said, Broadway's next closure will be from Spanish to Lorimier streets to work on the intersection of Broadway and Lorimier Street. That closure is expected to last no longer than three weeks, McMullin said, which would follow the agreement with the city to keep no section of Broadway closed longer than 21 days. If that doesn't happen, Fronabarger will be required to pay $10,000 a day for every day the section is closed.

The overall project, paid for by the city's Transportation Trust Fund half-cent sales tax, includes pedestrian lighting, landscaping and colored concrete to complement the new street.

The city and the contractor are working to keep the public informed. McMullin has already met with owners of the businesses in Broadway's 200 block, including Prodigy Leadership Academy and First Presbyterian Church.

smoyers@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Broadway, from Water to Spanish streets, Cape Girardeau, MO