Upgrading downtown Farmington's streetscape is a big job, big enough that the city wants to take it in two bites now.
City leaders have split the original $3.2 million project into two phases. The first calls for redeveloping Grand River Avenue between Farmington Road and Warner Street this year. The planned work for Grove Street between Grand River and Orchard Street has now been put on hold until the city finds financing. Farmington's Downtown Development Authority has now stepped in to help pay for the first phase.
"The project is out to bid as we speak," says Annette Knowles, executive director of the Farmington DDA. "We're looking at a mid-May start."
The project will wrap up by this fall. Even though it has been broken into two smaller chunks, the details of the overall plan remain the same.
The project will rebuild Grand River, making it friendlier to pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists. It will expand the sidewalk area and add bump outs around parallel parking spaces, and install new sidewalks, crosswalks, benches, bike racks, trashcans and decorative streetlights. The Grove portion will receive the same thing, but a boulevard will be added.
Source: Annette Knowles, executive director of the Farmington Downtown Development Authority
Writer: Jon Zemke
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