Road revamp plans revealed

Fayetteville to begin improving, narrowing city streets

FAYETTEVILLE — A piece of North College Avenue from near Sycamore to Poplar streets will serve as the focal point of a project to spruce up the main drag through Fayetteville.

The city has conceptual drawings and a budget outline for work on a few sections of North College and South School avenues.

Administrators hope the work will spur redevelopment along certain stretches, encourage drivers to obey the speed limit, and improve safety for pedestrians and the overall look of the corridor.

A transportation bond issue that voters approved in 2019 included $10 million for general improvements along what was at the time U.S. 71B, which doubled as North College and South School avenues through the city.

The city has since taken ownership of the corridor from the Arkansas Department of Transportation, enabling it to make changes without getting approval from the state.

A budget outline identifies more than $19.2 million in work on College Avenue and nearly $6 million in work on South School.

In addition to the $10 million in bond money, the city can use $1.5 million that the Transportation Department gave the city as part of the U.S. 71B ownership agreement. The city also has access to another $1.5 million in federal money through the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission.

More money could become available in federal aid or be allocated from the $73.9 million transportation bond fund, Public Works Director Chris Brown said.

SETTING PRIORITIES

The city has to prioritize the work. It has about $25 million in changes identified for the project and $13 million available.

The City Council’s Transportation Committee on Tuesday reviewed plans for College Street from North Street to just north of Poplar Street and South School Avenue from Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to 15th Street.

College Avenue currently has four, 12-foot-wide traffic lanes, a 12-foot-wide turning lane and 10 feet of right of way on each side for sidewalks and green space.

Plans show reducing the traffic lanes and middle lane to 11 feet each. Right of way for sidewalks and green space would increase to 12.5 feet on each side.

City administrators want to get new sidewalks on both sides of College Avenue from North to Sycamore streets, crosswalks at most intersecting streets, and some street trees and lights on both sides of the roadway. Other features such as planted medians, storm drainage and integrated art may have to wait, Brown said.

Council Member Matthew Petty, a representative of the part of town where the College Avenue work is planned, said he hopes the city can find a way to do most of the proposed features, especially near the Veterans Health Care Center of the Ozarks. The sidewalk near the hospital runs right next to the street, posing a danger for pedestrians, he said.

The intersection at Poplar Street would continue east of College Avenue, leading to a parking lot, trail head and potential gathering space behind the former Gypsy building. The trail head would connect to the future Midtown Trail along Poplar Street on the west side of College Avenue.

A traffic light also is proposed for the intersection at Poplar Street.

ART, BIKES

South School Avenue south of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to 15th Street would be reduced to three vehicle lanes, with one lane in each direction north and south and a turning lane in the middle. A painted buffer would separate cars from a two-way bicycle lane on the west side. On-street parking also would line certain spots on the west side.

A pedestrian refuge median is planned near 11th Street. Street trees, lights, crosswalks and continuous sidewalks on both sides also are included.

There is $200,000 in the budget proposed for public art along South School Avenue.

The city will seek recommendations from the Fayetteville Arts Council and local artists on the art to be included in the project, Brown said. Engineers and designers will work on finding spaces and providing platforms for the art, he said. Curating the art will go through the city’s separate bidding process.

Council Member Sonia Gutierrez Harvey, a representative of the south part of the city, said she hopes the public art is evenly spread.

“One of the things it really helps with is way-finding. A lot of people will use ‘before the elephant’ or ‘after the arch,’” she said. “One of the things I’m looking forward to with this whole plan is how we allow some breaks with some visual elements, and I think the public art is such a key part of that.”

The project is scheduled as part of the second phase of bond projects that the city plans to undertake. Projects in the first phase, including transportation, parks, trails, drainage, police and fire protection, started soon after the election in 2019. The city is planning three phases total over about a decade.

The administration is planning to issue bonds for the second phase of projects sometime next year, Brown said. That means residents should expect work to begin in North College and South School avenues likely in 2023, he said.