YOUNGSTOWN Plaza project set for March

The contractor wants to start as soon as possible.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Traffic on Market Street and Wick Avenue won't be interrupted after construction starts on reopening Federal Street.
Reconstruction of the street is expected to start March 15 on the pedestrian plaza that now runs through the heart of downtown.
The city's board of control awarded a $2,059,760 contract Thursday for the job to the low bidder, Parella-Pannunzio of Youngstown.
The contractor will outline a detailed construction schedule next week, said Carmen Conglose Jr., the city's deputy director of public works.
Lane will be open
At least one lane for traffic on Wick and Market will be open throughout the project, he said. That also applies to Phelps, Champion and Walnut streets, which border the project.
Pedestrian access will be maintained during weekday business hours to buildings along the street, he said. Some night and weekend construction will cut off access to some buildings, he said.
The project will feature a four-way intersection with traffic signals where Market Street and Wick Avenue meet at Federal Street. There also will be just short of 100 diagonal parking spaces on Federal.
The contractor wants to start as soon as possible, Conglose said.
The completion date is Dec. 22 if work starts as planned.
There will be delays, however, if snags develop with utilities underground that engineers aren't yet aware of, he said. There were a few unexpected problems when crews removed a western section of the pedestrian plaza several years ago, he said.
Engineers have done their best to avoid such problems, Conglose said.
"All we can do is deal with them as they arise," he said.
rgsmith@vindy.com