Before 

Construction to begin this fall.

Look for weekly updates soon.

  August 1, 2014  

Paving, Drainage and  Streetscape
Improvements 

Utility Relocations: Kirby to Buffalo Speedway

Duct work between Bammel and Ferndale is complete and restored Monday on schedule. Work continues this week between Virginia and Lake, the last run in the utility phase of this project. It is expected that work here will continue for another week. Crews will also continue restoration efforts along impacted sidewalk areas next week. Most areas will be restored with asphalt temporarily until next year's drainage and roadway improvements are implemented to include the full pedestrian streetscape installation. Some areas impacted with large bore pits will be restored with sacrificial concrete for stability and continuity.

Duct installation on Virginia south of Westheimer is now complete and CenterPoint has since set the poles necessary for the new underground service to return overhead. Crews will have to come back to this area following completion of work on Westheimer to make the final run up to the new poles and restore the roadway.

Shepherd to Kirby

Now that utility relocation has been completed on Westheimer between Shepherd and Kirby, drainage and roadway improvements are scheduled to begin. The scope of this work will include upgraded storm, sanitary and water infrastructure, new concrete pavement, curb and gutter and implementation of a complete streetscape and landscaping plan. Notice to proceed has been given for August 18th and work will begin at the storm drainage outfall point on Dickey Place.

This project was bid last month with the winning bidder being Reytec Construction Resources. Reytec completed drainage improvements for the Upper Kirby District on Richmond between Kirby and Buffalo Speedway in 2012-2013 and we are fortunate to have such a capable and responsive contractor continuing this work.

The Upper Kirby District is coordinating this work with the City of Houston drainage and pavement reconstruction on Shepherd between Westheimer and Buffalo Bayou. The City will begin work between Avalon and Westheimer next week. City contractors will be working 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on this section. They will install drainage improvements, water and sanitary as needed moving south from Avalon to Westheimer and East along Westheimer for about two blocks. During this time, traffic control will be established the length of the project on Shepherd and Westheimer. Motorists should expect to be down to one lane in either direction to pass through the construction area. The City has committed to clear the intersection as quickly as possible and restore traffic along Westheimer.

While the City is working in the intersection, Upper Kirby and Reytec will remain clear of Westheimer and will focus on the primary outfall point for storm water along this section at Dickey Place. Crews will begin August 18th working from Reba south to Westheimer installing a 4-foot by 6-foot storm drain to replace the 42-inch drain currently running under private properties just west of Dickey. This new, increased capacity will flow into the existing line running east along Fairview and into the Shepherd system that takes water to Buffalo Bayou. Reytec expects to be working along this section for two-and-a-half to three months.

This work will include new inlets at intersections and complete concrete restoration of the roadway. Driveways will be impacted as work moves down the street and will be restored with new concrete within the City right-of-way.

Crews will only work in small sections beginning with the Reba intersection and working south to Westheimer. No two intersections will be impacted at one time, in fact, intersection work will be done alone and opened up prior the subsequent block being impacted. Neighborhood traffic will be detoured around work areas.

Once work on Dickey is complete, crews will demobilize for the time between Thanksgiving and January 2 in hopes that the City has also completed work through the Shepherd/Westheimer intersection and has opened Westheimer to unobstructed traffic flow for the holidays. City work will continue over the holidays north of the intersection but will observe Thanksgiving and the day after, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

Upper Kirby work will begin on Westheimer around January 2 working from Shepherd to Persa. Look for updates as the schedule evolves.

TxDOT Construction

Intersection work at Weslayan continued this week on the TxDOT reconstruction of the frontage lanes, u-turns and intersection underpasses between 610 and Shepherd.

The first phase of this work entails demolition and reconstruction of the four right-turn quadrants on the outside lanes of Weslayan and the feeder road in both directions. Work will likely continue here for at least another two weeks before the underpass is reconstructed. Work on the underpass will take place in halves necessitating that one direction on Weslayan be detoured along the frontage road and u-turned to continue along Weslayan north or south. Details will be provided once this work is confirmed.

Work on the inside lanes both inbound and outbound between Kirby and Buffalo Speedway is complete. Center lane work is ongoing inbound just west of the Kirby intersection where demolition has been completed and crews are preparing to frame and pour the lane. Traffic should expect to be split around the construction area just off of the off-ramp. Crews have since closed the Kirby on ramp inbound between Kirby and Greenbriar as well as the outbound Kirby exit. Work here will take approximately three weeks to complete.