Rain Delays East Blithedale Construction

Construction on East Blithedale, scheduled to begin today, has been delayed due to rain. Instead it will start on Wednesday, with the lane closure extending up to 50 feet in length, beginning at Amicita and heading west towards downtown.

On Thursday, sewer line trenching will begin. This will cause a lane closure of 200 to 300 feet, beginning at Amicita and heading west towards downtown to Elm and Alto Vista avenues.

The work will occur Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is scheduled to last until August 23.

Residents along the street will have limited access to their homes at points throughout the project, and will receive notices 72 hours and 24 hours before workers will be in the area.

The city is encouraging residents to avoid East Blithedale and use Miller Avenue or Camino Alto as alternate routes. 

"Please be courteous to your neighbors and do not cut through the residential side streets during the construction period,” said Assistant to the City Manager Linn Walsh. 

The first phase of the project involves replacing the sewer lines, manholes and other features of the sewer, and should take about six weeks and cost an estimated $700,000.

The second phase, which will take about three weeks, involves a two-part surface treatment to the road for about $50,000. In the first step workers will fill in the potholes and cracks and then apply a seal. In the second step, they’ll microsurface the street using a high-quality aggregate that’s designed to extend the life of the pavement.

The project itself is meant as a temporary fix prior a major overhaul of East Blithedale scheduled to start in 2018 – once the $20 million Miller Avenue Streetscape Plan is complete. 

The overall cost of the interim repairs is $750,000, plus a 20 percent contingency that brings the total to $900,000. It will be paid for through the city’s Municipal Services Tax, which provides $1.2 million a year for road rehabilitations.