New Albany crews to reopen south side of Main Street as revitalization project continues

NEW ALBANY, Ind. (WDRB) -- Good news for businesses in downtown New Albany that have been affected by ongoing construction: the Main Street revitalization project is getting closer to completion.

In recent months, crews with MAC Construction & Excavating have been completing work on the south side of Main Street, from State Street to East 5th Street, as part of the second phase of the project. That will change overnight next week on April 11, when crews begin working on the opposite side of the street.

In a video posted Wednesday to the city’s Facebook page, New Albany Mayor Jeff Gahan described the Main Street project as "moving full-steam ahead" as the south side of the corridor nears completion.

On April 12, the south side of Main Street will reopen, and the north side will close as crews begin working on storm water systems, improving drainage systems, and installing conduits. Some of the current infrastructure is more than 100 years old. Once that work is complete, crews will begin restoring and rebuilding the north side of the street.

"We are now putting in more man hours just on logistics just to help our clients get here rather than being able to do the work that we need to pay the bills," said Cisa Kubley, owner of Sew Fitting.

The north side of Main Street will remain closed for the duration of the construction. Local access barriers will be placed at the intersection of Market and Bank, the intersection of Market and Third, and the intersection of Market and Fourth.

A brief closure, from April 12-April 15, is expected at the intersection of Pearl and Main as crews make it passable to the north side of the street.

The reopening of the south side of Main Street is welcome news to several small businesses that lost a lot of foot traffic because their shops have been blocked by equipment and orange traffic cones.

After businesses complained, city leaders worked with One Southern Indiana to provide business owners with a long-term, no-interest loan, and 12 businesses in the district submitted applications while others remained skeptical about taking on debt.

City leaders have said the project should be finished by the end of the year.