Coastal Excavation LLC is replacing an old water main beneath Jeff Davis Street. The northern half of the street was modified in the fall, while the southern half will get the same treatment this spring (KCAW Photo)

Construction on one of Sitka’s busiest streets has resumed. The city will soon close half of Jeff Davis street – from John Brady Drive to Lincoln Street – to general traffic to complete the second phase of a sewer project. The first phase was complete in the fall.

Right now, there’s not much evidence of construction. The contractor, Coastal Excavation LLC, is first hooking up three homes along Jeff Davis to a temporary water source. Next week, they’ll tear out a 50-year-old undersized water main and replace it. The old pipe is eight inches in diameter and prone to corrosion. The new pipe is 16 inches in diameter and made of plastic, with a better flow rate.

Jeff Davis St. in Sitka. (Emily Russell/KCAW Photo)

David Longtin, Senior Engineer for the city’s Public Works Department, said the work being done on the southern half of the street is identical to the work completed on the north half in November. That includes widening the sidewalks from four feet to five feet.

“I used to walk down it all the time and you’re always single filing. You can’t really walk next to someone when it’s a four- foot sidewalk. We wanted to make it safer for pedestrians and also it narrowed the street down, which we thought was a good idea to kind of slow traffic down anyway,” Longtin said.

The contractor is also adding two red concrete crosswalks to this well-trodden section of road.

The total project cost is $1.6 million. Of that, $640,000 is funded by a grant from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and $800,000 from a loan. The rest is being paid from the city’s general fund.

The physical topography of the road has also changed, which Longtin says will allow for better drainage. “Jeff Davis used to be a crown street, where the high point of the road used to be in the middle. When it rained, the rain would shed to either side of the crown. But as part of this project, we sloped the whole road in one direction so all of the rain that falls on Jeff Davis will fall to the west side of the street,” he explained. Consequently, the curb will now be vertical, instead of curved, to contain that flow.

Longtin estimates the project will wrap up in early June, at which time the street will re-open to through traffic.

Additional road closures will be announced as needed. For more information call the City and Borough of Sitka Public Works Department at 907-747-1804, or Coastal Excavation, LLC, at 907-747-3838. 

Jeff Davis Street, from Sawmill Creek Road to John Brady Drive, was closed for infrastructure replacement in August. The contractor is aiming to finish the project this winter. (Emily Kwong/KCAW photo)

UPDATE 4:30 PM, 10-31-16, Emily Kwong, KCAW

The city has postponed re-opening Jeff Davis Street in the evening hours.

On Friday (10-28-16), the city sent out a press release saying the road would be open from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. to through traffic. But residents on Jeff Davis Street voiced concerned about pedestrian safety.

The resurfaced road does not yet have sidewalks. Residents worried that passerby using the road could be struck by passing vehicles.

Dave Longtin, Senior Engineer for the City’s Planning Department, agreed it could pose a safety issue. In an e-mail to KCAW, he said the department decided that waiting another week to allow evening traffic was (quote) “the best way to go.”

The Jeff Davis Street project began in August and was designed to replace existing sewer infrastructure. In particular, the contractor – Coastal Excavation – swapped out a 50-year-old undersized water main with a new, larger diameter pipe. They are also widening the sidewalks, from four feet across the five feet across. As a result, the street will be one foot narrower. The sidewalk placement should be complete this week.

Longtin said Phase II of the project will begin in later winter, addressing issues in the stretch of road from Lincoln Street to John Brady Drive. Depending on weather, Longtin hopes the road will by fully paved in May.

UPDATE 5:00 PM, 10-28-16, Emily Kwong, KCAW

Jeff Davis Street will be open to through traffic in the evening hours.

The city closed half of the street in August for repairs. The contractor dug up the stretch of road from Sawmill Creek Street to John Brady Drive to replace existing infrastructure.

Now that the project is wrapping up, Jeff Davis will be open from 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. for traffic. The road will be closed during the day so the contractor can rebuild the sidewalks, which will be a foot wider, and prepare to shut down the project by wintertime.

Please call the city’s Public Works Department at 747-1804 for more information.