Several blocks of downtown Monterey Street have been closed as
the city puts finishing touches on a road remodeling.
Gilroy – Several blocks of downtown Monterey Street have been closed as the city puts finishing touches on a road remodeling.
The three-day closure began Wednesday morning and is expected to last through Friday evening. Traffic is being routed to side roads at Third and Sixth streets while workers lay asphalt on the road. The work comes in anticipation of a May 19 celebration of the remodeled downtown.
“At some of the crosswalks, the black pavement meets the white concrete,” project manager Charlie Krueger said. “It wasn’t a smooth transition so we had the contractor smooth that and we covered the whole road with two coats.”
That seal was expected to dry overnight so that workers could begin restriping the road by today. Workers will also spend today and Friday cleaning up following sidewalks repairs performed in the last week.
The project, which lasted from April to October 2006, eliminated a winding median in the road and brought sprawling sidewalks and street lamps reaching as high as building rooftops. Officials have hailed the project as a centerpiece of efforts to breathe new life into downtown.
The city is paying $37,000 for the final layer of asphalt on the road and in a parking lot at the corner of Fifth and Monterey streets. The replacement of concrete sidewalk slabs and installation of flower boxes are among a list of improvements included in the $4.1 million contract with Golden Bay Construction, of Hayward.
Krueger said the city may have to shut down Monterey Street one last time in a month to stripe the roads with a long-lasting paint.
