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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