PROJECT ANNOUNCEMENT

W. MAPLE RD. - CRANBROOK RD. TO SOUTHFIELD RD.

ASPHALT RESURFACING PROJECT

 

Work is planned to begin the week of June 27th to resurface West Maple Road between Cranbrook and Southfield Roads.  The process for this work is outlined below and further updates on this project will be provided as outlined later in this announcement.  It is our intent to minimize the closure and disruption during this project with an aggressive timeframe.  As you may know, the City of Birmingham was awarded federal funds for this project with limited expense by Birmingham residents.  The final decision on the striping configuration for the road will be made in the coming month.  The resurfacing project will be conducted in three (3) phases, as described below:

 

Phase 1 (Approximately 3 weeks) - Almost all sidewalk handicap ramps need to be removed along the corridor to meet current federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements.  The Contractor will work with Maple Road open to traffic, using the adjacent local streets as the access points.  As part of the upgrade, steep slopes shall be taken out of the sidewalks at the ramp areas, so cuts may be anticipated in some areas.  More significant sidewalk work is planned in the parking area of the shopping center at Chesterfield Road, and in front of the First Presbyterian Church. 

 

Phase 2 (Approximately 2 weeks) - A relatively small amount of concrete curb and gutter needs to be replaced.  This work will require shifting traffic from one side to the other, but two (2) lanes will be maintained at all times.  A small number of residential driveways will have to be closed to replace curb through them.  Residents will be required to park on an adjacent street for seven (7) days while the concrete cures.  Please contact our office if you have questions on how this may affect you.

 

Phase 3 (Approximately 4 weeks) - In the third and final phase, the existing asphalt surface will be removed and replaced with new asphalt.  The underlying older concrete pavement will also be repaired where needed.  Starting in August, the plans call for detouring traffic to Quarton Road during this phase.  Residents that need to access driveways from Maple Road will be encouraged to use adjacent local streets to reduce the distance that they need to drive on the exposed concrete surface, as the road will be closed to through traffic. 

 

The majority of the project will not disrupt landscaping or sprinkler systems, unless sidewalk ramp or curb replacement work is needed.  In these cases, please note that upon completion of the concrete paving, all lawn areas between the sidewalk and the curb will be graded, and restored.  (Small lawn damage areas will be seeded, while larger areas will be sodded).  All property owners in the project area with special treatments on City property, such as underground sprinklers, brick pavers, ornamental stonework, flowers, or other landscaping treatments need to be aware that if those items are in the way of work being performed by the Contractor, neither the Contractor nor the City will not be responsible in the event of damage to these features.  The Contractor will be asked to use all due care in these areas, but if they are directly in the area where work must be performed and damage occurs, they will not be repaired as a part of the project.  If you are concerned about these items, you are encouraged to remove them in advance of construction, if possible.

 

To reduce the chance for damage, we would appreciate if you would mark the location of any sprinkler systems along the Maple Road side of the sidewalk.  We recommend that the sprinkler systems be disconnected and turned off in the front of your house until the Contractor has completed his work.  Disconnection will help prevent damage and the inadvertent loss of water.  This is the responsibility of each homeowner.   The one exception to this will be if sprinklers located between the sidewalk and the building are damaged.  They will be restored by the Contractor.

 

For regular updates on this project, you are encouraged to join an email notification group for the W. Maple Resurfacing Project.  Please go to http://www.bit.ly/bhamnews  to sign up.  Also, during the work, a City of Birmingham representative will be on site and available to help answer questions.  You may also contact the Engineering Department at 248-530-1850, if you have any questions.