The city’s Department of Public Works announced two street closures as repairs continue. Freret Street has closed from Palmer Avenue to State Street for approximately five weeks. And beginning Monday (April 5), Broadway Street will be closed between Earhart Boulevard and Colapissa Street, also for about five weeks. Lane closure signs are in place and residents are reminded to use caution when driving, bicycling and walking near the construction sites. Freret: Boh Bros Construction Co.
The Octavia Street roadwork project — which encompasses work on seven blocks of Octavia Street, from South Claiborne Avenue to Freret Street, and 10 blocks branching off of Octavia — is set to begin in April and conclude at the end of the year. The $5.1 million project is part of the city-wide Capital Improvement Program, a roughly $2.2 billion collection of over 200 projects around the city, aimed at upgrading roads, sewerage and other infrastructure.
On Monday (March 29) evening, the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Engagement hosted an online meeting to inform residents and field questions about street repair work coming to Octavia and the side streets between Claiborne and Freret. Kimberly Turner, the outreach coordinator with Roadwork NOLA, noted that the residents had waited for the upcoming improvements “for a while.”
Octavia Street will be getting full reconstruction work in the 2300 to 2900 blocks. This involves repairing sewerage, water and drainage lines; completely reconstructing the street; and performing sidewalk repair. The side streets will receive patch mill/overlay work, which will repave the asphalt, fix the sidewalks, and perform upgrades to the curb cuts to bring them into ADA compliance as needed.
An unprecedented amount of infrastructure work is happening across New Orleans — altogether more than $500 million on roadways and on vertical construction projects and there is more to come. For the first time in more than five years, the city has approved nearly $300 million in bonds for a tax-exempt sale, which will lead to multiple projects out for advertisement in the coming months. These projects are designed to improve public spaces, add more stormwater storage and fix more streets. Additionally, about $110 million in joint infrastructure roadway projects, $10 million in capital building projects, and $100 million in green infrastructure projects will be out for bid in the next few months. Roadwork NOLA released updates on the following projects in Uptown neighborhoods.
From the Mayor’s Office
Beginning Monday (March 8) and continuing through Friday, (March 12), weather permitting, the 1800 block of Dublin Street, between Hickory and Cohn streets, will be closed to vehicular traffic to allow construction crews to start pavement restoration. Road closure signs will be in place throughout the process. During this time, street parking and driveway access will be impacted. Residents and visitors are reminded to adhere to “No Parking” signage to avoid being ticketed or towed, as well as to use caution when driving, bicycling and walking near the construction site. This work is part of the $15 million Hollygrove Leonidas Group A project that includes replacing/repairing damaged underground water, sewer and/or drainage lines; repairing damaged curbs and gutters; patching the roadway with asphalt; replacing damaged sidewalks and driveway aprons; and installing Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant curb ramps at intersections.
After taking a pause during the holidays, Boh Bros Construction Co. crews continued underground utility work and roadway restoration in the Audubon neighborhood as part of the $7.3 million Audubon Group A infrastructure improvement project. In January, crews continued excavation and milling work on Hurst and Octavia streets. Waterline work on Webster and Henry Clay streets continued in close collaboration with Sewerage & Water Board. The project is currently scheduled to be complete in summer 2021, weather permitting. Black Pearl, East Carrollton Group A
The $11.9 million Black Pearl, East Carrollton Group A project, which began construction in August 2020, continues to make progress.
Beginning on Monday (Feb. 1) and continuing through Friday (Feb. 5), weather permitting, Department of Public Works contractor Wallace C. Drennan Inc. will close the intersection at Cambronne and Birch streets to vehicular traffic as part of the Hollygrove, Leonidas Group A project. Traffic controls and signage will be in place; residents and commuters are reminded to use caution when driving, bicycling and walking near the construction site. Construction crews will close the intersection to remove and replace the entire intersection all at one time.
While the past year has taught us that the future is highly unpredictable, in New Orleans, roadwork will always endure.
As roadwork has been classified an “essential activity,” infrastructure improvements have continued through the pandemic, though with modifications aimed at worker safety. On Thursday (Jan. 14) evening, the Office of Neighborhood Engagement hosted an online meeting to notify St. Thomas and Irish Channel residents about street milling and reconstruction work coming to their area. The $7 million project is officially called East Riverside/Garden District/Irish Channel/St.Thomas Group A.
With about $2.2 billion in funding from FEMA, and additional funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Roadwork NOLA oversees over 200 Department of Public Works and Sewerage & Water Board projects.
As part the city’s expansive infrastructure repair program, the Office of Neighborhood Engagement hosted a virtual meeting Tuesday to inform Broadmoor residents on street repair and reconstruction work coming to their neighborhood. This particular project is called Broadmoor Group A, and work is slated to begin in November. The cost of the project will be $13.6 million. The project area will be bounded by South Claiborne Avenue, Eve Street and Toledano Street, extending to Nashville Avenue and Jefferson Avenue on the lake side of South Tonti. The work will include some waterline and sewerage line replacements.
City officials marked the $7.3 million Audubon Group A roadwork project Wednesday (Sept. 30) with a groundbreaking ceremony. Crews began work on the project several weeks ago, the city reports. The scheduled work includes repaving some roadways from curb to curb and replacing underground water, sewer and drainage lines. Other roads will be patched in either asphalt or concrete.
Mayor LaToya Cantrell today joined other officials and partners to break ground on the $4.2 million Freret Group A roadwork project. “This is the first Joint Infrastructure Project starting in Council District B; in total there will be nearly $60 million invested in this district over the next several years,” said Ramsey Green, deputy CAO for infrastructure. “At the conclusion of this project, residents on 50 blocks will have better streets and an overall improved quality of life. We have 16 projects under construction worth about $108 million.” The city’s Department of Public Works, in conjunction with the Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans, began road repairs in the Freret neighborhood on Feb.
