Zone: South
Project: 52nd Avenue Reconstruction Project
This week the first major FargoStreets capital improvement project in 2019 kicks-off with the start of the 52nd Avenue South roadway and infrastructure improvement project.
Starting, Friday, March 1 at 9 a.m., contractors for City of Fargo Engineering Department will close the existing 52nd Avenue South bridge over Drain 27. The closure is necessary for the bridge contractor to remove the existing bridge over Drain 27 and start to install two new bridges associated with project. The road will be fully closed to thru-traffic between 47th Street South to 53rd Street South. With this initial project work, both intersections will remain open to access 52nd Ave S, area businesses and residential neighborhoods.
Neighborhood roadways should be limited to local traffic only. Motorists wishing to continue travel on 52nd Ave S are encouraged to use other major arterial routes on either side of the bridge:
- West: 45th Street South to 40th Avenue South to Veterans Boulevard
- East: Veterans Blvd to 40th Ave S to 45th St S
The next project phase will begin once weather conditions allow on the roadway reconstruction and underground work.
A mile and half stretch of 52nd Ave S between 45th St S and 63rd Street South will be completely reconstructed and upgraded from a rural two-lane roadway to an urban four-lane divided roadway with dedicated turn lanes in south Fargo this year. Additional project work will include:
- Installation of new storm sewer, street lighting, and new shared used path along both sides of 52nd Ave and underneath the new drain 27 bridges
- Expansion of the water infrastructure along the west end of the 52nd Ave corridor
- Installation of new traffic signals at the 63rd St S, Veterans Blvd, and 45th St S intersections
“52nd Avenue is an important roadway that supports residential and commercial business commuters,” said Jeremy Gorden, Transportation Division Engineer for the City of Fargo. “To continue to support the growing population in south Fargo and West Fargo, the two-lane roadway needs to be widened and modified to improve the overall traffic flow.”
The improvement project will be spread over six-phases, which will overlap or begin after phase work is complete:
- Bridge construction (starts Friday, March 1): Two bridges will be built over the drainage ditch. In mid-August, the westbound bridge will open to two-way side-by-side traffic while crews complete the reconstruction of the eastbound bridge.
- Underground utility and roadway reconstruction: Eastbound and westbound 52nd Ave S will be reconstructed in multiple phases between:
- East side of Veterans Blvd to west of 45th St S (complete by mid-August)
- West of the 63rd St S intersection to east of McMahon Estates Circle (complete by mid-August)
- East of 63rd St S to west of Veterans Blvd
- Veterans Blvd intersection: Reconstruction will happen in three sub-phases. Crews will maintain access through the intersection in both directions. Work will begin after Sheyenne St and 40th Ave S is fully open to traffic in City of West Fargo Segment three project.
- 47th St S, 53rd St S and 63rd St S intersections: Intermittent closures and full intersection closures will occur to complete underground utility work and reconstruction needs. Work at 63rd St S intersection will begin after June 20.
- Median and turn-lane reconstruction: After bridge construction is complete, permanent medians at 53rd St S intersection and westbound right-hand turn east of 45th St S will be installed on 52nd Ave S. Two-way traffic will be maintained on the outside lanes of eastbound and westbound roadway.
Gorden shared, “By expanding this roadway, safety is a main concern. At two of the local side streets approaches to 52nd Avenue, Reduced Conflict U-Turns (RCUTS) or ¾ access points will be constructed to help control access and safety at these wider intersections. Drivers will enter 52nd Avenue with a right-turn movement and travel to the next intersection to make a U-turn to travel east. Desired improvements to this arterial corridor were identified in the transportation study conducted in 2017.”
The majority of the work is slated to be complete by August 15 with a final project completion date of October 25.
The project will be funded with a combination of funds from Federal Highway, Cass County Highway, SE Cass Water Resource District, City of West Fargo, and City of Fargo sales tax and special assessment. The estimated designed construction costs are $19.2 million.
Over the course of this project, adjacent work zones may impact suggested driving routes. This summer project work will occur in City of West Fargo, Sheyenne Street Segment Three (32nd Avenue South to 40th Avenue South), City of Horace County Highway 17/76th Avenue South intersection and additional City of Fargo flood mitigation project will construct a box culvert south of 52nd Ave S across 63rd St S.
**Please remember all schedules are tentative and weather dependent.