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August 6, 1999
Center Street project proceeding on scheduleMost obvious change is addition of boulevardsBy GUY PRIEL Journal Staff Writer NEW ULM -- After months of traffic problems related to the reconstruction of Center Street, motorists will breathe a little easier on Sept. 1 when the roadway is reopened to traffic. City officials reported this week that the reconstruction of Center Street is proceeding on schedule, and landscaping will be completed within a month after the street reopens. The most obvious change is the addition of medians, sometimes known as boulevards, along the middle of the street and the addition of bubble lights reminiscent of those on downtown streets. "The street, once completed, will be similar in design as the original street on the section between Broadway and Payne," City Engineer Steven Koehler said. Between Broadway and State streets there will be two traffic lanes on each side of the median, with left-turn lanes at Broadway and State, which will help relieve some of the traffic congestion near Turner Hall and the courthouse, Assistant City Engineer Owen Todd said. Between State and Washington streets, there will be two lanes on each side, with a small parking bay by the junior high school for vehicles or buses, he said. "There will be no left-turn lanes, but there will be space between the medians for drivers to safely get out of traffic while waiting to turn," he said. Between Washington and Payne streets, there will be two lanes on each side with a parking lane allowing for parallel parking, but no left-turn lanes. "There never have been left-turn lanes at that point, so there isn't much difference in the design, except for the islands," Todd said. Between Payne and Garden streets, the design changes, depending on which direction traffic is flowing. "We have an area where there is a reduction from two lanes to one," Koehler said. In What is known in New Ulm as westbound, that is uphill from Payne, there will be two traffic lanes and a left-turn lane next to the County Services Building and Vogel Arena, with no parking lanes, Todd said. "On the eastbound side of the street, it starts as one lane and widens to two with no parking lanes," he said. There will be one lane on both sides of the street going up the hill past Martin Luther College, with a left-turn lane at Summit, and the street will remain one lane from Summit to the city limits, he said. "There will be parking lanes on each side of the street from Summit to the city limits, up by the college and the (Hermann) Monument," he said. "There were originally two lanes going up the hill, but that will be a major change." The parking areas will help add parking for students and staff at the college as well as add spaces for people visiting Hermann monument. "Another change will be the addition of a sidewalk from each end of the median where the Defenders Monument sits," Todd said. The Defenders Monument is located between the junior high school and the courthouse. There will also be a walkway around the monument and bullards, similar to those on downtown streets, with a chain between them, he said. "The idea is to keep people from crossing the street at the middle of the monument, because they will have to walk around to the ends where the chains are," he said. "There will be some type of shrubbery added to the medians to give it a park-like feel down the middle." Changes were made to the signal lights at Payne and at Broadway to improve traffic flow on Center Street, Koehler said. The project meets or exceeds all state guidelines for roadway and street reconstruction.. "Once the project is completed, people will be well-pleased with the result, and it will look better than it did before," City Manager Richard Salvati said.
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