Riding along Second Avenue North has been bit bumpier than usual for the past few months.
Work is ongoing along a stretch of the road from Eighth Street North to 13th Street North, according to Columbus Light and Water General Manager Todd Gale.
Gale said the work started with sewer repairs at two points along the road. Now, CLW is upgrading water lines along Second Avenue.
“We’re upgrading in the blocks where we had two-inch water lines; we’re upgrading those to six-inch water lines and putting a fire hydrant here and there wherever it’s required,” Gale said.
So far, Gale said, CLW has spent $42,388 on sewer repairs and other miscellaneous work on Second Avenue. He said the department has spent an additional $90,000 so far on the water line upgrades, with another $50,000 to $75,000 of work left to do. New fire hydrants will be installed at the intersection of 10th Street North and at the intersection with 12th Street North.
As the work has progressed west to east along Second Avenue, crews temporarily shut a portion of the road to install the new lines and keep moving.
Bonnie Boyd, a Second Avenue resident, said the work could at times be annoying, but she understands it will improve the area. Boyd also complimented the work crews, saying they have been pleasant so far.
“It’s been for a good end,” Boyd said. “It’s been an annoyance, but that’s OK.”
Gale said the work has been going on in various stages since about Thanksgiving, and work should take four to six more weeks to complete.
Ward 5 Councilman Stephen Jones said he’s aware of Second Avenue North’s rough condition due to the work. However, it is one of the streets set to be paved as part of the city’s ongoing $5 million paving project.
Gale said CLW wanted to get in and get the work done before the street gets paved.
“We don’t want to tear up a brand new street if we don’t have to,” Gale said. “We’re taking the opportunity to upgrade our facilities.”
Jones said though the work may be irritating to motorists, it’s better to fix issues now than to have to deal with them later.
“I wanted it fixed right,” Jones said. “A lot of the issues we have over there now are from half-doing stuff. We wanted everything fixed right so we don’t have to go back in.
“Just be patient,” he added. “We want to make sure it’s done right, but it is a top priority and hopefully will be wrapping up pretty soon.”
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.