Block Avenue Construction Begins with Work on Dickson Street

03/24/2010

The first phase will begin March 24th

The City of Fayetteville is beginning the project to reconstruct Block Avenue between the Square and Dickson Street.  These improvements are intended to provide a safer, more pedestrian friendly, and aesthetically pleasing link between Dickson Street and the downtown square, while also improving the water, sewer, and drainage infrastructure. Further, the improvements accomplish a major objective of the City to connect the merchants and residents at the downtown square, including the Farmer’s Market, with those in the Dickson Street entertainment district, thereby extending the regional draw of downtown Fayetteville.

The first phase will begin at 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, March 24, 2010, when the Water/Sewer Department will make a new connection to the 12 inch water line in Dickson Street.  We will then install a new 12 inch PVC (plastic) line south on Block from Dickson to Center, replacing the existing 6 inch water line that was installed in the 1890’s.  We will add one new fire hydrant (mid-block between Dickson and Spring) and replace several older fire hydrants, significantly increasing fire flow in the area.  We have already installed new water mains on Meadow between College and Church, replacing the old 2 1/4 inch lines; eliminating several dead ends.  This work minimizes the number of customers without water if there are future problems, and also improves area fire flow.

In general, the new pipe on Block will be laid parallel to and very close to the west edge of the street.  Some will be in the existing roadway; some will be under the sidewalk.  The exact location depends upon other utilities and the storm drain. A temporary asphalt patch will be installed after the water and sewer line work. We will then have to dig from the new line to each existing meter box in each yard to connect each home to the new water line.  We will also replace any old or obsolete meter boxes and loops.

Work will begin Wednesday when Dickson Street will be closed overnight as the connection in the water main intersection of Dickson and Block is made.  During this road closure, westbound traffic will detour north on Saint Charles to Lafayette.  Eastbound Dickson Street traffic will detour south on Block to Spring Street. All detours will be clearly marked. Dickson Street will be reopened Thursday morning.  If necessary, we will complete the work in the street with a second closing Thursday night, March 25th.  Total water line construction could take up to three weeks.  After the new line is installed, we must test it and send samples to the Arkansas Department of Health for testing before we can actually connect homes to the new line.  This sampling will take another three weeks.  Thus, we will lay the new pipe for three weeks, leave for a few weeks, then we will come back to tie buildings to the new line and disconnect the old line. During the water line replacement, you will probably experience one or more short service interruptions as we tie your building to the new pipeline.  If all goes according to plans, these shall be short, and you will be notified in advance.   We do not anticipate any requirements for boil orders during this process.  If a boil order should become required, we will hand deliver a notice to each building.

Street and sidewalk work will follow the water line installation.  Planned improvements include: storm drainage upgrades; landscaping islands; new 9’ wide sidewalks/streetscape; street trees with irrigation; 35 new street lights matching those on the Square; asphalt overlay and new striping, including "sharrow" bicycle symbols; raised intersections constructed of stamped and/or colored concrete; and removal of overhead electric poles and lines where possible.  Work will begin on the west side of Block, between Dickson and Spring, and will then proceed to the east side. The entire section between Dickson and Spring will be completed (with the possible exception of island planting and street light installation) before any work begins on the portion south of Spring Street.  We anticipate completion of the Dickson to Spring section to take 10 to 12 weeks.

On behalf of the City of Fayetteville, we would like to express our appreciation in advance for your cooperation and understanding as we perform our work in this area.  For additional information on the project, please contact Leif Olson, lolson@ci.fayetteville.ar.us, Chris Brown, cbrown@ci.fayetteville.ar.us, or David Jurgens at djurgens@ci.fayetteville.ar.us.  We welcome your feedback on this important project.

Thank you again for your support as we improve the infrastructure in this area.