Patience, Gertrude…Sixth Avenue will reopen eventually.
The city sign at the corner of Sixth & Pennsylvania has changed once more…this time adding a month to the time estimated for the completion of a new sewer for the Uptown area. The street closure (south of Pennsylvania to Upas) was initially anticipated to occur between July 21-29, then was changed until mid-August. However the contractor ran into difficulties, and the road will be closed for the additional month to complete the installation of a junction structure.
The original traffic plan was to have a full closure of the avenue for a week allowing the contractor to set up a huge machine to drill up to 40+ feet deep hole. Then, the plan called to open two lanes by shifting the traffic to one side of the road (re-stripping to have one lane in each direction) while the contractor continued to construct the junction box.
A couple weeks ago, soil sloughing occurred during the drilling operation at elevation 1-12 feet in an area close to a gas line. As a result, the excavated area may grow wider to take more than half of the road. Since the site condition has created some concern, the contractor evaluated other options and requested keeping the road closed until the junction structure is safely in place. The city says the current traffic plan is working, and staff in the field have indicated that they have received no complaints. Mike Bourgault is the point of contact and will have the latest information if you want to contact him at (858) 495-7894. Until then, those in cars will continue to back up on Pennsylvania…but bikers, joggers and dog walkers are enjoying the empty asphalt thoroughfare to and from Balboa Park.
