Jade Dundas, Capital Projects Director with the City of Asheville, joined Dustin Clemons, the Project Manager for the new sidewalk addition on New Haw Creek Road, who provided the following update at HCCA’s Community Meeting November 14.

The new sidewalk section, between Beverly and Bell Roads, was originally approved in 2016 with a project cost of $3 million, funded by the NCDOT ($2 million) and the City of Asheville ($1 million).

All easements will be finalized this week. Some utilities have already been moved and other utilities will be relocated during the winter. The final design plans should be ready in the next month, which will enable NCDOT to issue authorization allowing the City to accept bids for construction to start in the spring of 2024. Completion of the nearly one mile route is expected to take about one year—timelines will be built into the contract.

The sidewalk will cross the street near 655-660 New Haw Creek Road. The City studied the corridor and would have preferred to have the sidewalk on one side only but given the topography, this was the best option for build-ability and storm water management. The pedestrian crossing will include a push button activated flashing signal for residents' safety.

The construction may be done all at one time or in phases, depending on the contractor. However, past projects were done in sections. Either way there will be lane closures and traffic disruption.