Setting up detours should allow a major Rockford road project to be completed ahead of schedule despite a delay that has left it starting months later than first planned.
City engineers had expected the $5.5 million reconstruction of Charles Street to begin in 2022, starting with relocations of overhead utilities underground. That work was delayed until spring.
But City Engineer Timothy Hinkens expects the road — considered one of the worst in Rockford — to be done in August, about two months before the October date when it was originally forecast for completion.
“We are allowing the contractor to close down Charles Street completely and detouring traffic instead of phasing the work to leave the (road) open to traffic,” Hinkens said, adding that local residents will maintain access to Charles Street. “This will save the project time and money.”
Rockford in September approved a contract with William Charles Construction for the work as part of the city's 2022 Capital Improvement Program, which was the largest in city history until the approval of next year's $345 million plan.
The Charles Street project is being paid for with the city's 1% infrastructure and road sales tax. It is expected to make it easier for pedestrians and bicyclists to navigate and make it safer for East High School students walking to school.
It includes adding a multiuse path along the southside of Charles Street, removing and replacing 3,500 feet of pavement from 28th Street to Parkside Drive, new sidewalks, new storm sewer, upgraded traffic signals with lighting, and sanitary sewer improvements, Mayor Tom McNamara said.
"I am excited to see one of the worst streets in Rockford be completely reconstructed," McNamara said. "It will have a multiuse path on the southside and sidewalk on the northside. It will be a significant upgrade for a critical road."
