Traffic Congestion, Road Construction, & Improvement Projects

[gman430]

Main Street:

Wade Hampton Blvd:

[gman430]

Bids for this go out May 10th:

Project Outlines by Location-

East McBee Avenue and Falls Street Intersection: A new 55-unit apartment development is planned for the corner of East McBee Avenue and Falls Street in downtown Greenville. The project is known as “98 East McBee” (the Peacock Site). The scope is to develop a streetscape that serves as a setting for the project while implementing the City’s overall vision for side streets, engaging the public and drawing pedestrians down McBee. The all-inclusive budget for streetscape is not to exceed $450,000.

Village of West Greenville: This small-scale commercial area is home to many artists and small businesses. This historic mill village still maintains much of its original architecture. The goal is to provide a safe pedestrian experience including landscaping and lighting. The all-inclusive budget for the first phase of improvements is $100,000.

It is anticipated that public involvement will be required for the West Greenville streetscape including the neighborhood and business association. The two downtown locations will require the consultant to work with the City and the property owners/developer and incorporate existing conceptual master plans.

Phase 1 - Inventory and Site Analysis for each location

Phase 2 - Plan Development

Phase 3 - Construction Drawings

Edited April 26, 2013 by gman430

[vicupstate]

Great anecdote and good news as well. [From Gville News]

 

Beginning in 2001 and continuing for three years, I-385 was widened to six lanes from I-85 to downtown. City officials wanted to include in the plan a specially designed median wide enough to accommodate landscaping.

 

Transportation officials balked. Plants wouldn’t thrive. Dangerous. It’s never been done that way.“We had some raucous meetings,” White said.

 

Then a Greenville resident visiting Raleigh, N.C., saw landscaping in the medians of the city’s Beltline, which is made up of I-40 and I-440 around the city. He took a picture and sent it to White. White blew it up and took it to a meeting with highway planners. “We embarrassed them. We said, ‘If North Carolina can do it, why can’t we?’” White said.

 

DOT acquiesced. Greenville Water System installed an extensive irrigation system and the city installed crape myrtles, high-rise live oaks, zelcovia, India hawthorne and juniper.

 

“What do you think appeared on the cover of the state DOT annual report the next year?” White said. “The landscaping.”

 

Planter boxes were built beside the road, as well, but the money ran out before any trees were planted, White said. This year, the city has allocated about $50,000 for that work to begin.

 

Dale Westermeier, the city’s deputy parks and recreation director, said the weeds and grass will be removed and evergreens, maples and crape myrtles installed.

[GvilleSC]

Nice story, and fantastic to see additional plants will be added in the planters along the interstate. 385 in the City is truly a showpiece of the state's major roads.

[gman430]

Construction contract for the $240 million I-85/I-385 interchange project to be awarded in February 2014: http://www.gsabusiness.com/news/48277-s-c-transportation-department-embarks-on-240m-interstate-project?rss=0

Edited July 15, 2013 by gman430

[gman430]

The City of Greenville is requesting bids for new streetscape and landscape along the north side of Augusta Street, a state road, between Lupo St. and Capers St. in the City of Greenville. The project consists of demolition of approximately 1000 feet of sidewalk, curb and gutter, and driveways. New sidewalks will include brick banding and driveways will be relocated to optimize commercial access along Augusta Street. Curb lawns and several planters will be added along with 6 pedestrian lights. The curb side lane will require full milling and repave at project completion. Due to traffic restrictions, driveway replacement may only occur on weekends. Bids close August 13th.

[Gville2012]

Wonder if this has anything to do with the Lewis Plaze revamp.

[GvilleSC]

Wonder if this has anything to do with the Lewis Plaze revamp.

The North side would be across from the Plaza correct? They must be waiting for the plaza redevelopment to do the other side of the street.

[RiverWalker]

The North side would be across from the Plaza correct? They must be waiting for the plaza redevelopment to do the other side of the street.

Or there could be an agreement that the developer would be responsible for the south side of the street as long as the city makes improvements and upgrades to the north side. The city has been very effective in working with developers, whether as a public-private financial partnership or simply as an above-board quid-pro-quo arrangement (not the underhanded kind).

[vicupstate]

http://greenvillejournal.com/local/2411-property-owners-want-to-swap-right-of-way-for-enhanced-salters-road-bridge.html

 

I sure hope the enhanced verson of the Salters Rd. bridge is done.  It needs to be noteworthy.

[vicupstate]

GSA Business is reporting that on Tuesday County Council will vote on whether to put a 1 cent sales tax on the November 2014 ballot.  The tax  would raise $65mm per year and by law could last only 7 years or less.   A committee would decide what the money could be used for, but primarliy or exclusively, it would be roads/highways.

[ausrutherford]

If the state does not act...others must...

[vicupstate]

Apparently the tax could also pay for mass transit, sidewalks and bike trails, pee the Greenville News, although the committee would have to include those items.

[Gville2012]

I would vote yes for this.

[Danmire]

I vote yes but I'm not optimistic that it would be passed by the voters.  The same thing to pay for more parks was shot down by voters a few years ago.  I hope common sense will prevail and it gets passed.

[vicupstate]

From Greenville News:

 

With $2.7 million in hand, the city of Greenville is set to start moving its next stretch of commercial power lines off the street and underground.

 

About 1,000 linear feet of Haywood Road from Toys “R” Us to Kanpai of Tokyo is at the top of the list, building on last year’s $1 million project that buried wires from Woods Lake Road to the toy store site. The second phase could cost between $1.4 million to $1.6 million.

 

On West Washington Street, 20 to 23 utility poles would be relocated at a cost of up to $250,000.

 

A section of Augusta Street where power lines now sag over sidewalks is also pending. Moving those utilities underground from East Augusta to Oregon streets is estimated to cost up to $2.4 million and would need easements from 15 property owners.

 

Eight years after winter storms blacked out homes and businesses and left as many as a million people without power, city officials say undergrounding efforts are seeing results.

How projects are chosen depends on where private and public investment is already taking place and on the support of property owners, who may be concerned about the impact on area businesses. Construction sometimes lasts for months.

But a special fund that pays for the work, filled by Duke Energy customers and a percentage of the utility’s revenues, needs time to accrue, which means it can take years for larger-scale projects to break ground.

 

“We need to keep this program moving forward with some momentum,” said Mayor Knox White, who wants to see Stone Avenue near North Main Street added to the list.

“It doesn’t need to be done this year. It doesn’t need to be done next year, but it would be nice to have these things on a list so developers know this is where we’re going,” White said.

 

The city is making a bigger dent in its residential line burial program, which gives homeowners a $1,500 subsidy to cover costs. Of the 2,507 applicantions, 1,013 have been completed as of Sept. 30, according to city documents.

Edited October 4, 2013 by vicupstate

[vicupstate]

Apparently the tax could also pay for mass transit, sidewalks and bike trails, pee the Greenville News, although the committee would have to include those items.

The Greenville News has an online poll for the issue.  It is NOT behind the paywall either.  Please vote. While totally unscientific, these things have weight in politics.

[Gville2012]

The Greenville News has an online poll for the issue.  It is NOT behind the paywall either.  Please vote. While totally unscientific, these things have weight in politics.

link?

[russwd]

Poll

[RiverWalker]

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank Board delayed an expected vote Tuesday on several major road projects. Two of the top three of those improvements are in the Upstate.

 

The top priority on the SCDOT’s list of projects is widening and improving the I-85 interchange with I-385 in Greenville.

 

Full story:

 

http://www.wspa.com/story/23641096/approval-delayed-for-major-upstate-road-improvements

[gman430]

The City of Greenville is requesting bids for new streetscape and landscape along the north side of Augusta Street, a state road, between Lupo St. and Capers St. in the City of Greenville. The project consists of demolition of approximately 1000 feet of sidewalk, curb and gutter, and driveways. New sidewalks will include brick banding and driveways will be relocated to optimize commercial access along Augusta Street. Curb lawns and several planters will be added along with 6 pedestrian lights. The curb side lane will require full milling and repave at project completion. Due to traffic restrictions, driveway replacement may only occur on weekends. Bids close August 13th.

 

This one has been cancelled. Bids for the one below go out November 25th:

 

 

The City of Greenville (“City”) is requesting sealed bids for Streetscape Improvement work along West Camperdown Way in accordance with the City’s Design and Specification Manual and South Carolina Department of Transportation (“SCDOT”) Standard Specifications for Highway Construction, Edition 2007. Contract Time to complete all work shall be 120 calendar days.

Project limits are primarily along West Camperdown Way between South Main Street and River Street. Some additional work is also to be completed on Hammond Street and Rhett Street. Existing curb and gutter, sidewalk and asphalt are to be demolished in the areas shown on the drawings and replaced with approximately 1,575 linear feet of new curb and gutter and 1,150 square yards of sidewalk. Approximately 7,860 square feet of concrete pavers are to be placed in West Camperdown Way, Hammond Street and associated sidewalk areas as shown on the drawings. The remaining existing asphalt surface is to be milled and resurfaced at the end of the project.

Other associated work to be completed as part of this contract includes: a small amount of storm drainage work; removal and replacement of an existing sanitary sewer line; new pedestrian street lighting including its conduit and wiring system; a new irrigation system; and landscaping.

[Gville29601]

Please provide input and opinions regarding potential sidewalks and bike paths.  I hope the county puts the funding issue on the ballot. Better roads and sidewalks could move Greenville forward.

 

http://greenvilleopenmap.info/WalkBikeSurvey.html

 

 

Greenville County Planning Dept. will be having an open house on this issue. However, if you can't make it you can add your opinion to the online survey. http://www.bikewalkgreenville.org/greenville-county-pedestrian-bicycle-network-improvement-plan/

Edited November 18, 2013 by FUgrad02

[Gville29601]

I would be interested in knowing what areas people think have a strong need. Connect the swamp rabbit through the Parkins Mill area? Sidewalks connecting Caine Halter YMCA to downtown along Cleveland Street? Woodland Way? Parts of North Main Street?

[transplant08]

I would be interested in knowing what areas people think have a strong need. Connect the swamp rabbit through the Parkins Mill area? Sidewalks connecting Caine Halter YMCA to downtown along Cleveland Street? Woodland Way? Parts of North Main Street?

Parkins Mill folks don't want the SRT coming through.  Not sure if this is the majority view, but those in that area who hold it are vocal.  I've heard it first hand at multiple public events.  That area will likely be the last link in the chain to be completed.

[gman430]