State Street Garage Update- May 17, 2013

The State Street Garage expansion is continuing as was described in the last post. The overpass from the garage to the former escalator landing and then on to S. Gay Street will open on Friday, May 18, 2013. The parking level at the overpass level is still closed for parking however, so either the elevator or the stairway can be used to access this point.
The New Sentinel article in today's paper written by Jim Balloch accurately reflects our schedule and I have included a link here for more detail:
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2013/may/15/official-state-street-garage-work-on-schedule/

The following is a series of pictures taken the last two weeks. Several are from the new deck level.

       

The following pictures where all taken from the new deck:

The next picture is looking out from the new overpass to S. Gay Street.

Work on the new stormwater system is still ongoing. The picture below is of the work completed on Clinch Avenue.

This is a picture of the clearing being done along S. Central Street in anticipation of the new storm system there.

Thanks for your interest in this project and in Downtown Knoxville.

Don't forget the Biscuit Festival this weekend.

State Street Garage Update- April 30, 2013

All of the precast concrete installation has now been completed including the overpass and new parking deck. All of the streets around the State Street Garage have reopened as well as all of the entrances and exits to the garage. One lane of S. Central Street will be closed some time soon for a few days to install a storm system and other temporary closures are still possible while we finish this project. This is particularly true for State Street as we plan to rebuild the sidewalk there and relocate the trash enclosure. The frame for the roof to be installed on the overpass is in place and the handrail will be installed soon. A small crane will be used to lift the glass roof sections into place in the next few weeks. Much of the parking area has been restored in the garage at this point. The upper deck and the new deck are still closed off while we finish the detail work there. Below are several pictures of the project taken the last few weeks. Some of them have been supplied by the Contractor and were taken at some of the key moments.

Please join me Downtown for First Friday on May 3, 2013. Also the Farmers Market begins today at Market Square.
Thanks for your interest in this project and in Downtown Knoxville.

State Street Garage Update- April 19, 2013

The overpass is now in place and the next bit of work will be to install the railings. Hopefully sometime in the next few weeks this new access can be opened on nights and weekends. The roof and other enhancements will continue to be under construction.
The temporary stairway has reopened and the elevator is generally back in operation. Foundation work in the area is still ongoing so periodic closures of the elevator area are still likely.
Thanks to PBA for providing the pictures below:

S. Central Street remains closed during work hours while the last pieces of precast concrete are placed. This work should be completed this week or early next week. Storm drains will be installed along S. Central Street upon completion of this work which will necessitate a continued lane closure most of next week. Additionally, breaking down the crane for removal will also likely take a couple of days.

Thanks for your interest in the State Street Garage Expansion Project and in Downtown Knoxville.

State Street Garage Update- April 11, 2013

Progress on the State Street Garage expansion is continuing. Due to a variety of factors, S. Central Street will likely remain closed most of next week to finish construction and then to disassemble the crane. The eastern portion of Union Avenue will also be closed much of the time while this last bit of work is accomplished. Traffic into the parking garage from S. Central Street will be directed to Commerce Street and then through the existing surface parking lot on State Street.
Some goods news here is that State Street will not have to be closed after all. Thanks to the kindness of our neighbors, H.T. Hackney, the smaller crane needed to lift the precast concrete forming the overpass will operate from their parking lot beginning next week. State Street lane closures may still be possible throughout the day particularly while the crane is swinging the precast into place. The elevator at State Street level will not be able to be used most of next week at any time, even nights. Foundation work in front of the elevator will make the elevator inaccessible. The temporary stairway will also not be in use during working hours. It will be open nights, however. During work hours next week, access to S. Gay Street from the surface lot and from the State Street Garage will only be available via the sidewalks on Union Avenue and Clinch Avenue.
By the week of April 22, 2013, all streets surrounding the garage and the garage itself will generally be reopened. Some work will remain on the new deck of course and also on the overpass. The plan is to try to get the overpass and railing in place such that the overpass can be used on nights and weekends by the end of the month while work on the glass roof is ongoing during the day.
We hope to have total completion of the project by the 4th of July.

As a reminder to everyone of the look we are working towards, I thought I would once again provide the renderings provided by our Architects , McCarty Holsaple McCarty, some time ago. Some of the design has changed slightly but I believe this is still a very good approximation.

Here are a few pictures I took earlier this week of the work along S. Central Street:



The picture below includes the old State Street Garage sign which we plan to refurbish.



The new trash enclosure will be moved to the location below:

Please plan to attend the Dogwood Arts Festival Art Fair downtown on Market Square this weekend. The weather should be fantastic and Market Square really looks nice. For the first time in may years all four corners of the Square have open businesses with the opening of Tupelo Honey and now the Orange Leaf.



Thanks for your interest in Downtown Knoxville and in the State Street Garage Expansion project