By Mike Anderson
Residents of Burlington are invited to a public meeting at 4 p.m. this Thursday at City Hall for discussion of a $21 million riverfront and downtown revitalization project slated to begin construction later this month. The bulk of the project will be paid for with $17.5 million from a TIGER, or Transportation Investment Generation Economic Recovery grant awarded to the city in 2018. The rest will be paid for with other grant funds and $2.7 million from the city.
“It’s a big one, but it’s exciting,” said Burlington City Manager Chad Bird over the phone on Tuesday. “Anytime we can impact a community by improving amenities and infrastructure is exciting because it has a lasting impact on our residents for a long time.”
The TIGER grant is split into three sections: Jefferson Street, Main Street, and the riverfront. Over the course of the next two to three years, the two roadways will receive a facelift in the form of new amenities including added greenery and planters, permeable pavers, wayfinding maps, improved parking, updated benches, and overhead lighting. The stormwater and sanitary sewers will also be replaced. The total work on Jefferson will stretch from Central Avenue to Front Street while the work on Main will eventually cover all the blocks between Columbia and Division streets.
Meanwhile, the riverfront will receive new docks and boat ramps, as well as improvements to the sea wall to enhance flood mitigation. New moorings will also be added along the sea wall, enabling river cruise ships to dock downtown.
The city has hired engineering consultant Veenstra & Kim and architecture firm SmithGroup to draw up the plans for the project, with Portzen Construction tapped for the building phase.
According to Nick MacGregor, assistant city manager for public works, construction will begin on Oct. 18 in the west section of Jefferson Street, as well as on some new boat ramps on the south side of the Burlington Memorial Auditorium.
Bird said he expects construction to wrap up on both in time for winter. As far as a timeline for the rest of the project, Bird said he expects the riverfront to be completed by November 2022, all of Jefferson Street by May 2023, and the entirety of Main Street by October 2023.
To attend the meeting remotely, access the following link: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/222460685