Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

NILES — Northern Construction Services workers were on site Monday morning as Niles’ Downtown Sidewalk Replacement Project got underway. 

The project will consist of removal of the planters, brick pavers, and trees along Main Street from M-139 (Front Street) to M-51 (Fifth Street) and M- 139 (Front Street) from Main to Sycamore. 

Once the current features are removed, the new concept will be installed. The new concept is the same as what was installed in front of the Post Office Apartments at 322 E. Main Street. The elimination of the planters aims to create a larger and less restrictive feel to our downtown.

The initial phase will consist of removal of all planters, raised and at grade, to allow utility coordination to commence. Once the planters are removed, removal and reconstruction of the sidewalks will begin. 

The project will address the deterioration of the downtown streetscape, which has led to safety concerns regarding trip hazards and instability of the ground underneath the sidewalk blocks. It will be the first downtown sidewalk project of this nature since 2004.

The project will be phased in an attempt to be the least disruptive to downtown. The $936,510 contract – funded equally with Revitalization and Placemaking grant funds and American Rescue Plan Act grant funds – was awarded to Northern Construction Services Corporation of Niles and is expected to be completed by August 31.