By Austin Arceo
The Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE
March 22, 2008 09:16 pm
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Terre Haute residents have more to notice this spring than just the fluttering of birds and blossoming of flowers.
Several significant construction projects continue to gain momentum in their various stages of development. Downtown continues to change with the construction of the transportation facility at Seventh and Cherry streets, as well as the renovation of the Tribune building on Wabash Avenue. The Margaret Avenue corridor project has evolved in a way of its own.
The projects will develop more throughout the upcoming months, each having its own impact upon the city.
Mayor Duke Bennett said that in the south end of the city, a lot of traffic issues exist, and an expanded Margaret Avenue would help move traffic, especially between Third and Seventh streets.
Bennett said the transportation facility will be a good addition to downtown, as it provides parking near several other downtown locations.
He also said that the Candlewood Suites and Terre Haute Children’s Museum projects would help finish the 700 block on Wabash Avenue and “really improve the downtown from a couple perspectives.”
He noted that with the completion of the different projects, downtown will have two hotels, the children’s museum and a parking facility.
The projects “are important to all of us,” Bennett said, “and we look forward to getting them open and in service.”
Officials and crews are still waiting for the weather to warm before work can be finished on the transportation facility at Seventh and Cherry streets. The work includes caulking and striping the parking spaces, said David Walker, public works administrator for the city’s Department of Redevelopment. Sealing the surface of the concrete floor also requires higher temperatures, said Cliff Lambert, executive director of the department.
Based on the manufacturer’s warranty, which the general contractor follows, the temperature needs to be at least a “consistent” 50 degrees — and not just during the day — before the work could be done, Walker said.
“That is what’s killing us right now,” Walker said. “We just keep waiting for this to warm up and keep going, which we’re getting closer and closer here.”
The facility cannot be open to the public until a “certificate of occupancy” is completed, Lambert said. State inspections at the site also are needed before the facility is opened. The inspections will have to be coordinated with the respective inspectors’ offices, he said.
If the city were to open the facility before the certificate of occupancy was received, the site immediately becomes the liability of the city, Walker said.
Lambert said the total cost of the project is estimated at between $14.25 and $14.5 million. He said that more than $700,000 was spent because of soil-related issues at the site. Oil tanks found at the site needed to be extracted, and soil had to be compacted and old building foundations removed before construction could begin.
Lambert said Wednesday that a potential opening date is somewhere near the end of April.
Transportation Director Brad Miller said in a recent interview that more than 620 parking spaces will be part of the project, with half the spots reserved for Indiana State University.
While the facility will be attended between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., the garage will be accessible 24 hours a day, he said. A device will collect the fees all day. Smoking will not be allowed at the site.
The cost to park will be $1 an hour, with a maximum of $6 per day, Miller said. He said that monthly passes will be available, estimating they would cost about $45 a month.
As downtown continues to develop, he hopes the facility will be used.
“With everything that’s come down, with the two new hotels and the Hulman Center events, we’re hoping that this will be received very well,” Miller said.
Assistant city engineer Larry Robbins said that officials still are acquiring land for the Margaret Avenue corridor project’s first phase, which runs from Third to Seventh streets.
The whole project would affect Margaret Avenue from Indiana 46 to Indiana 63 and, in its entirety, is expected to cost at least $70 million.
The project consists of widening the existing roadway from two lanes to five, including a left-turn lane or median. The project also includes 1.7 miles in “new alignment” that will be created from Fruitridge Avenue to a new intersection at Indiana 46, according to a legal notice for a public meeting conducted last year.
Robbins said that, while no land along the route has been bought, almost all appraisals have been done and they “are in one form of review or another.”
City Engineer Chuck Ennis said that, with any luck, a groundbreaking on construction for the phase can begin next year.
“ … And sometimes this land acquisition stuff can go smoothly,” Ennis said. “Sometimes it doesn’t go so smoothly.”
A year had been budgeted for land acquisition, Ennis said. Robbins said that they are about four months into the process.
Among the concerns of residents along the corridor is why the process is taking so long, and being compensated enough for their property.
Robbins said that about 35 parcels will be affected, and that everyone should have their offers within two to three months. He said that on most properties, only part of the parcel is needed.
Robbins said that nobody has received an offer yet.
He said that if people have issue with the offer, there is a condemnation process that reviews appraisals to determine a fair market value for the property.
Ennis said that the land-acquisition process is a “well-worn process,” designed to be as fair as possible. Robbins said he doesn’t want to go through that condemnation situation.
He indicated people won’t have the option not to sell.
The construction boundaries will be from Harding Avenue to Eighth Street, Robbins said.
As for the second phase of the project, which is from Seventh Street to Canal Road, Ennis said that officials are talking to the project consultants and the work has been put on hold.
“We have some financial issues to discuss here and planning for the next phase,” Ennis said.
That phase was scheduled for 2010, assuming the project had the funding, Robbins said.
Engineering officials said that the city received $7 million for the Margaret Avenue project, most of which was going to provide for the first phase. Ennis said there are plans for another monetary request to help fund the second phase.
Candlewood Suites, an extended-stay hotel on Wabash Avenue, is under construction near the new Hilton Garden Inn-Terre Haute House.
Crews have been remodeling the former Tribune building as the major structure for the hotel.
Workers were drywalling on the sixth floor, then moving their way down, said Tim Dora, of Dora Hotel Co. Limited Liability Corp., which will manage the hotel. He said that workers frame the walls, then electrical wiring and plumbing is installed, hen drywalling.
“ … It’s moving along quite well,” Dora said.
The trades workers are following one another, so that while drywalling is being done on the sixth floor, plumbing and electrical work is done on lower levels, he said.
The Tribune building will be renovated to fit 81 guest rooms. Another 16 guest rooms will become available when the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum, next door, is completed. More details on the museum project are expected soon.
A renovated Tribune building is expected to open in July, Dora said last week.
Dora also was involved with the Hilton Garden Inn-Terre Haute House at Seventh Street and Wabash Avenue. The new Hilton and Candlewood Suites will make up a hotel center.
The dual hotels will work together in other ways. Visitors at the Candlewood Suites will have access to the swimming pool at the Hilton Garden Inn, which will provide some food services to the extended-stay hotel.
Trish Williams, general manager of the Hilton Garden Inn-Terre Haute House, said that “business has been steadily on the rise,” and that their expectations have been exceeded regarding customer satisfaction, cleanliness and revenue.
“So business has been doing very well,” she said.
Reservations already are being taken for people to stay in the Candlewood Suites starting Sept. 1, Williams said.
She also said that in the next month, people will be able to make reservations online.
Several people currently staying at the Hilton Garden Inn expressed interest in moving to the Candlewood Suites once it’s open, Williams said. Some businesses also have expressed interest in having people stay in the new hotel.
She said that people already have reserved rooms.
Austin Arceo can be reached at (812) 231-4214 or austin.arceo@tribstar.com.
• Officials are waiting on a weather warmup to put the finishing touches on the new parking facility at Seventh and Cherry streets.
• The Department of Redevelopment hopes the parking garage will be open by the end of April.
• When completed, the facility will contain 620 parking spaces; more than half will be reserved for Indiana State University.
• The new facility will be attended from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m., but the garage will be accessible 24 hours a day. The cost to park will be $1 per hour with a maximum of $6 per day. Monthly passes will cost an estimated $45 per month.
• TOTAL COST FOR THE PROJECT: Between $14.25 and $14.5 million. More than $700,000 was spent on soil-related issues.
MARGARET AVENUE
• The city is still in the process of acquiring land for the corridor project’s first phase, which runs from Third Street to Seventh Street. Most of the appraisals on the project have been completed and, according to assistant city engineer Larry Robbins, the appraisals are “in one form of review or another.”
• The project affects the avenue from Indiana 46 to Indiana 63.
• When completed, the avenue will be wider, going from two lanes to five, including a left-turn lane or median. The project also includes a “new alignment” that will be created from Fruitridge Avenue to a new intersection at Indiana 46.
• TOTAL COST FOR THE PROJECT: New Margaret Avenue will cost at least $70 million.
• Work is continuing on the former Tribune building as the extended-stay hotel nears completion. The building will be renovated to fit 81 guest rooms. Another 16 rooms will be available when the Children’s Museum is completed.
• Workers are currently drywalling on the sixth floor and will be working their way down.
• Guests at the Candlewood Suites will have access to the Hilton Garden Inn’s swimming pool.
• People can make reservations to stay in the Candlewood Suites starting Sept. 1 by calling (812) 234-3400. Most of the hotel rooms will be housed in a remodeled Tribune building, and the facility is scheduled to open in July.
• Construction crews are working on sewer replacement and the additions of curbs and gutters and new sidewalks from Osborne to Hulman streets along Fourth Street.
• Two phases of the Brown Boulevard project are currently under way. Crews are working on grading the soil and storm sewers have been installed from around Locust Street to Maple Avenue.
• Work being done in the Edgewood Grove subdivision includes new sewers, along with new pavement, sidewalks, curbs and gutters. Crews currently are doing concrete work.
• Find out more about these projects in Monday’s Tribune-Star.
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Photos
Mellow yellow: The back side of the former Tribune Building is covered with yellow material during the construction of the Candlewood Suites hotel at 8th and Wabash. The Tribune-Star
Window work: Jason Thomas and Tony Klyaic work at the sixth floor window of the Candlewood Suites building site Friday afternoon. The intersection of 7th and Ohio streets can be seen below the workers. The Tribune-Star
Nearing completion: The downtown transportation hub and parking garage is nearing completion. Work will be finished as soon as warmer weather arrives. The Tribune-Star
Margaret project: Margaret avenue is blocked at 13th street.l The construction will connect with the 13th street project when complete. The Tribune-Star
Fourth street project: Crews work on installing sidewalks along South Fourth Street on Saturday afternoon. The Tribune-Star