Politics & Government

Main Street Star Relaid Over Durability Concern

Officials thought inlaid granite centerpiece of new Main and W. Market street intersection might not have been strong enough to withstand downtown traffic.

 

Contractors on Tuesday relaid the granite star centerpiece of the rebuilt intersection of Main and W. Market out of concern that the star’s bedding would not be strong enough to support traffic through the heart of the Historic Downtown, according to a report in The Express-Times.

The 50-by-30-foot inlaid Moravian star is the dominant feature of a project to improve the look of that intersection and the nearby Main Street sidewalks.

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Though it was supposed to be completed by the end of October, the work is now slated to be finished Nov. 21, the newspaper reported.

That would be the day before Thanksgiving and two days before the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, which is critical to Main Street merchants who look forward to the holiday season as a time when tourists flock to the Christmas City.

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The project has been plagued with problems and delays almost from the beginning. After starting a week late in June, delays mounted through the summer because of rain and difficulties from underground utilities, which were more complicated to deal with than originally anticipated.

The $600,000 project was proposed and largely financed by downtown real estate investor Liberty Property Trust, which pledged $300,000. A $50,000 state grant and private donations from other Main Street stakeholders was to pay for the rest.

The work at Main and W. Market was to be the first of a multi-year, five-phase $3.2 million project to give a facelift to Main Street from W. Broad to Church streets. Mayor John Callahan and Bob Kiel, the senior vice president of Liberty Property Trust, announced the project in April.


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