East Central To Reopen Thursday

Monday, December 17, 2012

— East Central Avenue will reopen to traffic Thursday after more than a year of construction between the square and East J Street.

The project was completed five months ahead of schedule, said Mike Churchwell, director of the city’s Transportation Department. Churchwell thanked the residents who live along East Central Avenue and Northeast Second Street, a detour route, for their patience over the past 14 months.

At A Glance

East Central Project

The East Central Avenue renovation project will wrap up Thursday, five months ahead of schedule at a cost of $3.7 million.

While work on East Central Avenue started in October 2011, the first six months of the project were dedicated to moving water and sewer lines. Contractors widened the two-lane street, added a stone and ironwork bridge over Town Branch Creek and placed gateway markings with Bentonville’s signature “B” welcoming drivers to downtown.

The street will provide new left turn lanes at Central Avenue and J Street for access between the square and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

“Street Closed” signs have blocked traffic on East Central Avenue at the Bentonville Courthouse, and detour signs directed traffic along Northeast Second Street. The side street has carried increased traffic flow between the square and Crystal Bridges. The city added a four-way stop sign at the corner of Northwest Second and Northwest A streets to deal with the extra traffic.

Churchwell said it will be up to the street’s Traffic and Signage Committe to decide if the stop sign will stay up after Central Avenue reopens.

Speed Steenblock lives on Northeast Second Street toward the square. Traffic has been diverted along the two-lane street in front of his home since the project began. He said he will be happy to see the Central Avenue work wrap up.

“You could say it’s been hectic,” he said. “It’s definitely been an inconvenience.”

He said it’s been almost impossible to back out of his driveway in the morning, with cars backed up more than 25 deep from the four-way stop at the square.

“I do think it will be nice,” Steenblock said of the revamped Central Avenue.

The city’s $3.7 million contract with APAC ends in May. The company is eligible for incentive pay for up to 100 days for early completion, Churchwell said. The contractor will be awarded $2,500 for each day it completes the project ahead of time, up to $250,000, according to contract documents.

“We would also like to thank APAC Contractors for an exceptional finished project that they completed several months ahead of the scheduled completion date, and we also thank Sandcreek Engineers for an outstanding design which we feel the citizens of Bentonville will be very proud of as a gateway to our downtown,” a city news release stated.