Residents Can Join In Ground Breaking

Newport residents who want to help city officials dig up a little dirt will have their chance Tuesday. Shovels will be provided.

The public is invited to participate in a ground-breaking ceremony for a $2.65 million downtown renovation. The festivities will be at 9 a.m. at a vacant lot at the corner of Fourth and Union.

The renovation will redecorate the downtown with turn-of-the-century style lamp posts, benches, trash cans and other amenities while reducing traffic congestion with a one-way couplet for U.S. Highway 2.

Project engineer Sean Hoisington, of James A. Sewell & Associates, said construction is expected to start March 16 and be completed by early October. Work will start on Union Street, which will be rebuilt to carry traffic from U.S. Highway 2. The federal highway currently passes through downtown on Washington Street.

Highway traffic will be diverted to Union beginning about the end of June, and Washington will be rebuilt in two-block sections to minimize the hardship on businesses. When work on Washington is completed, it will carry southbound Highway 2 traffic and Union will handle the northbound traffic. , DataTimes