A preconstruction meeting was held Monday, Feb. 6, regarding the US 62/West Van Buren sidewalk project between representatives of the city, the Arkansas Department of Transportation, McClelland Engineering, and the contractor.
“Finally, after three years, we are getting ready to start construction on that sidewalk from Planer Hill to just beyond Nuttin’ Fanci motel where there is a big ditch,” Mayor Butch Berry said. “That ditch is a major cost. We have to span over that gully. The sidewalk must have handrails. It is not just a simple sidewalk. Of course, nothing is simple in Eureka.”
Berry said the cost of the sidewalk has tripled because of increased construction costs. Roughly a quarter of a mile will cost nearly $418,786. Despite not being able to go as far as originally intended, Berry said he is excited about a sidewalk being added to a part of town where it is greatly needed for pedestrians walking to stores and restaurants.
“It is going to take another grant to get the sidewalk all the way to the Eureka Springs Community Center,” Berry said. “But we’re getting there. Right now, we are trying to figure out how to get a sidewalk from what used to be the Eureka Inn and is now the Osage Lodge, which is all private property, to the existing sidewalk near Wall Street.”
Public Works Director Simon Wiley said construction on the sidewalk is expected to begin March 6 and take 90 calendar days to complete. Wiley said the project is being partly funded by a state grant of 80 percent with a matching local grant of 20 percent. The city also received some federal funds for the project.
“The city has to pay for the entire thing up front, and then the state reimburses the city for 80 percent of the costs,” Wiley said. “Federal stipulations under the Buy American Act require the steel in the project be made in the U.S.”
Wiley said the city hopes to finish the sidewalk from Nuttin’ Fanci to the community center next year. And there will be sidewalks next to the new roundabout planned at the intersection of Hwy. 23 and US 62/East Van Buren.
“We hope to keep connecting the dots and get sidewalks all the way along Van Buren one of these days,” Wiley said.