With so much road construction around town, it is at times difficult to tell where one project ends and another begins. The Downtown Main Street and Gray Street projects are a perfect example of this dilemma. What began on Main Street as a community initiative to upgrade and renovate Norman’s historic downtown area, turned into a painstaking experience on the part of the merchants, city staff and contractor. Although the Main Street project isn’t complete, a considerable amount of work has been finished and the fruits of everyone’s labor are ripe for the eye. There are still items to be completed and liquidated damages to be settled, but what the final product will be can now easily be seen.
The Main Street Downtown Improvement Project is a complex combination of several different projects and funding sources, implemented on Main Street between Park Drive and Porter Avenue.
The Roadway portion of the Main Street project is a pilot project for Certification Acceptance from ODOT in which the city and their designee, Tetra Tech FHC assume ODOT’s role in project administration and inspection. The Enhancement project although funded by federal monies through the state, and the Waterline/Fireline project were also administered and inspected by the city and Tetra Tech FHC.
The estimated $2,005,364 construction cost of the Roadway project is being funded with 80% STP-UZA funds ($1,604,291) and 20% City of Norman funds ($401,072). The estimated $478,729 construction cost of the Enhancement project is being funded with Federal Transportation Enhancement Grant funds ($368,808), citizen participation (92,202) and City of Norman funds ($17,719). The estimated $556,796 construction cost of the Waterline/Fireline project is being funded with City of Norman funds.
Project Elements and funding:
- Roadway modifications - Surface Transportation Project funds from the Oklahoma City Urbanized Area (STP-UZA- distributed through the Oklahoma Department of Transportation [ODOT]) and City funding)
- Curb and gutter - STP-UZA and City funding
- Asphalt cold milling and overlay -STP-UZA and City funding
- Drainage improvements - STP-UZA and City Funding
- Traffic signal upgrades - STP-UZA and City Funding
- Water line relocations - City Funding
- Roadside (streetscape) enhancements - Federal Transportation Enhancement Grant distributed through ODOT) and citizen funding
- Sidewalks - STP-UZA, Federal Transportation Enhancement Grant and City funding
Gray Street on the other hand is a completely separate project, with the majority of roadwork being done by city crews. There are two parts to the Gray Street project; one a resurfacing phase, which is underway and progressing quickly. The other part is a complete traffic signal upgrade project.
The resurfacing was funded by and through the City of Norman Capital Fund. That portion of Gray Street from Flood Street to Porter Avenue is being paid from funds set aside as part of the 2000 capital budget. The budget from the 2000 capital budget for this work is $174,200. The section of Gray Street between Pickard and Flood is being funded from a 2005 capital budget item. The amount set aside for this project in the 2005 budget is $37,000. The work on Gray Street was delayed to prevent damage to the new asphalt surface by the signal project. Now that the majority of the signal work is complete, the asphalt surface can be installed with little danger of damage.
The traffic signal upgrade project on Gray Street is a state project. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation and their designee, Cobb Engineering Company of Oklahoma City, is handling construction inspection and administration. The $491,460.14 construction cost is being funded with 80% federal funds ($393,168.11) and 20% City of Norman funds ($98,292.03). The project is expected to take 150 calendar days to complete.
Project elements and funding:
- Installation of a new traffic signal at the intersection of Gray Street and Webster Avenue.
- Replacement of the signals and controller cabinets at the intersections of Gray Street with Porter Avenue, Peters Avenue, Santa Fe Avenue, University Boulevard and Flood Avenue.
- Installation of decorative traffic signal poles similar to those recently installed along Main Street in the Downtown area.
- Installation of underground communication cable between traffic signals for interconnection and traffic signal coordination.
- Installation of priority control system for emergency vehicle traffic signal pre-emption.
- Minor intersection modifications (i.e., wheel chair ramps, corner bump outs, drainage pipe and inlets, etc.)
Although the Main Street and Gray Street projects are separate, they have some common elements that tie them together and provide continuity to the downtown area. Originally the work on Gray Street was planned to start well after the improvements on Main Street were completed. Unfortunately the contractor on Main Street is not completely finished, but his level of effort and associated disruption has reduced significantly. Gray Street like Main Street started with replacement of the underground infrastructure in advance of the above ground improvements, thus prolonging the initial construction timeframe but in the long run decreasing the overall interruption.
Anybody who has been around Norman for any length of time learns fast that Norman is alive with new growth, but also under constant upkeep as work is done to maintain our aging infrastructure. That is why projects like these are so important in maintaining Norman’s high quality of life.
