Second phase of Macon-Bibb Second Street connector project kicks off

The Second Street Corridor connector is an example of urban renewal, Macon-Bibb County Mayor Robert Reichert said Tuesday as officials broke ground on the latest phase of the project.

Macon-Bibb leaders, agencies and contractors were on hand for Tuesday's groundbreaking that involves building a new road beginning at a realigned Edgewood Avenue. Tuesday marked the beginning of the second of three phases in the $8 million overall project that's designed to link Mercer University, downtown Macon and other areas.

Reichert pointed out that three brick duplexes in the area had become nearly uninhabitable and that there were issues with illegal dumping and overgrown vegetation. The connector has become a symbol of a rebirth of housing and potential commercial development, he said.

"As we've acquired the right of way for this new connector, I think it's going to result in the urban renewal of this neighborhood and new spirit of optimism and enthusiasm of being connected," Reichert said. "We have learned lessons in the past that rather than building a high-speed thoroughfare through an neighborhood, this will be a walkable, pedestrian friendly, bicycle friendly connector."

This $1.7 million, quarter-mile phase is expected to take between 90 and 120 days to complete, said Clay Murphey, who oversees special purpose local option sales tax projects for Macon-Bibb County.

There also will be new sidewalks and lighting, storm drainage improvements and the installation of a 20-inch-wide waterline to serve Navicent Health, Medical Center.

During construction, First Street from Edgewood Avenue to Elm Street will be closed and eventually rerouted, and the railroad crossing at Elm Street will be permanently closed.

"This (phase) is about cleaning up the infrastructure to get ready for the railroad bridge overpass," said Chris Sheridan, owner of lead contractor Chris R. Sheridan & Co.

The new bridge, which will built in the final phase, will go over the railroad and connect to Second Street.

The project also ties into work around Mercer University, including a pedestrian bridge near the football stadium. That bridge is being paid for with a $2.8 million Tax Allocation District bond.

Murphey said he's hopeful the entire Second Street project, which began with the rerouting of Little Richard Penniman Boulevard between Nussbaum Avenue and Telfair Street, will be completed by November 2016.

To contact writer Stanley Dunlap, call 744-4623 or find him on Twitter@stan_telegraph.

This story was originally published November 17, 2015 at 4:53 PM with the headline "Second phase of Macon-Bibb Second Street connector project kicks off ."