While the bridgework is essentially tracking along its projected trajectory, in an effort to accelerate the sidewalk process that has fallen so far behind its original schedule, ODOT and its contractors have agreed to a project revision that allows them to take up two blocks of sidewalk at a time on the west side of Pacific (between 3rd and 1st) so that they can gain some work efficiencies and shorten the overall disruption time. With this change, jackhammers and sawcutting were in full swing.
This may cause some increased discomfort in the short term for businesses such as the Blue Moon Cafe, but the hope is that it will decrease the total downtime. As always, such times of duress are when the affected businesses need your patronage the most.
The preliminary digging along Pacific has uncovered a bunker fuel tank, which is being pumped out and removed, but, barring further unknowns, the two-block effort should allow the concrete workers to move along with pouring larger sections at a time. The tricky timing of ensuring continuous access to businesses and residences is the next major logistic to be surmounted and the ODOT team is applying a variety of tools, such as night work, quick-fixing concrete, and temporary alternate accesses, to ensure that the all sidewalk sections come together smoothly and briskly.
In the midst of all this hubbub, you will see the excavation team jumping back and forth across the Hoquarton as they dash up to the north end next week to close up the drainage work there and then jump back down mid-week to tie the 2nd Street storm drainage into the manhole on Main Street. This full day’s work will require traffic control that necks down southbound traffic on Main to one-lane from the bridge to just south of 2nd.
When you do get back around to watching the bridge progress, now that the spans and bearings have been set, you will see the deck being formed over the next few weeks. You will also spot City crews who will be joining the contractor next week to assemble the new waterline across the bridge. This will be the main that serves the entire north Hwy 101 area up to the Fred Meyer/Goodwill as well as providing a backfeed for Bay City and the Creamery through our intertie system.
The Governor left town with a picture of Tillamook, from the project to the Creamery to the Chamber of Commerce offices themselves, in the midst of a full remodel. The promises made were that another visit in Fall 2018 would provide an entirely different picture of a community complete.