Ocean Boulevard streetscape improvement work resumes

Work has resumed on a section of Ocean Boulevard as crews continue to give the area between Second Avenue North and Ninth Avenue North a facelift.

The boulevard is in the second off-season of a three-winter project for streetscape improvements, which includes burying utility lines and putting in new water and sewer lines, sidewalks, pavement and landscaping. Crews do the work during the winter then clear out for the busy tourist season.

The work on the boulevard will end up costing nearly $8 million.

“These are the last seven blocks in the hotel district that have not received this upgrade,” city spokesman Mark Kruea said. “When finished this section will look as nice as the other 53 blocks of Ocean Boulevard that we’ve already completed with underground utilities, new sidewalks, pavement ... It’s a complete makeover.”

Crews shut down the southbound lane of Ocean Boulevard last week, reducing traffic to one lane in each direction, with no off-season parking allowed on the boulevard in the construction zone.

Crews worked on the boulevard from Second to Fifth avenues North last winter, laying sewer and conduit on the western side of Ocean Boulevard before switching to the other side of the street.

The contractor, R.H. Moore Co. Inc., is installing underground cables on that section of Ocean Boulevard. Crews are installing underground conduit, new water and sewer lines, new sidewalks and new pavement from Fifth to Ninth avenues North.

Next winter crews will put finishing touches on all seven blocks, including moving utilities underground. All road work is expected to be done by early 2017.

“We do this sort of major work during the off-seasons so that it interferes with fewer visitors and drivers,” Kruea said.

Houston-based Orion Marine Group also began work last fall on installing two large-diameter deepwater ocean outfall pipes at Fourth Avenue North. The pipes will run underneath the seabed and out more than 1,000 feet into the Atlantic Ocean.

The project will remove pipes from Eighth Avenue North to First Avenue South.

Work on the pipe installation continued in the ocean through the summer and will go until about Oct. 1. Work will resume on the street side on Oct. 2, where the contractor is expected to finish work in all areas by November.

This story was originally published September 15, 2015 at 9:22 AM with the headline "Ocean Boulevard streetscape improvement work resumes."