News you can use

Construction and road closures in Highland Park area begin Monday

Beginning Monday, Havre’s Public Works Department will be closing select streets in the Highland Park area for work that has been on hold for several years.

Public Works Director Dave Peterson said 60 work days have been allotted for the completion of multiple projects in the area.

He added that road work and the replacing of a water line under Boulevard Avenue has been in progress since roughly 2015.

“We had a project about six years ago that included improving 11th Street West down to S-curve then up to 16th Avenue. It was also supposed to include Boulevard Avenue down Eighth Avenue West down to Second Street West. There wasn’t enough money to complete Boulevard Eighth Avenue West project. So, that got put on hold,” Peterson said.

While 60 days have been allotted, Peterson estimated work will last 30 to 45 days depending on weather.

The road work was a city-county project that has been combined with state funding.

Peterson then broke down how the work will impact the people of Havre over the coming months.

Peterson said prior to doing that project, the city has to go in and replace the waterline underneath Boulevard Avenue. Local contractor Patrick Construction starts that work Monday. It includes about 1,400 feet of eight-inch water line put in on Boulevard Avenue from 11th Street to Kober Drive.

“What’s going to happen is (workers will) go block by block, so they’re probably going to have a block out of service. … Patrick Construction is starting on 11th Street West. Then they’ll head north until they get up to Kober Drive. So, on Boulevard from 11th Street West to 10th Street West will be the first section of road going to be closed to through traffic,” Peterson said.

Public Works has funds allocated to the state for the city. These are secondary or urban routes. Funding is from urban fund monies the city gets every year from the state. Peterson said urban routes like 13th Street West, Second Street West and Ninth Street West tie into main streets of Havre. Peterson said the department started with $3.6 million or less. The water line work will be done with city funds.

“Like I said, it was a city-county project combined because 16th Avenue West was a county road and Eighth Avenue West that we’re completing this year was also a county road. So, we used our combination of funds between us and the county to do this project,” he added.

Peterson said it’s a requirement through the Montana Department of Transportation when any roads that get reconstructed the infrastructure underneath has to be redone, which is a policy Public Works try to keep going on any streets in town.

Two contractors are going to be on the project. Patrick Construction is doing the waterline project for the city of Havre.

Century Companies out of Lewistown will be doing the paving part of the project, administered by Montana Department of Transportation.

Peterson said that once the waterline is complete, Century Companies will come in and MDT will take over oversight.

Peterson said in addition to street closures in the area, property owners will likely have limited access on Boulevard Avenue. He added properties can be accessed through alleys but again stressed work is being done a block at a time.

For more information, people can call Public Works at 265-4941.

 

Reader Comments(0)