Utility Work Closes Vine Street Through Uptown Westerville - Lighting East of Africa
Vine Street has become a construction corridor through Uptown Westerville, closed to through traffic between Park and Home streets as crews carry out two separate utility projects.
South of East College Avenue, workers are installing new sanitary sewer lines beneath the roadway. North of College, Columbia Gas crews are laying new natural gas lines.
The work has transformed the normally quiet two-lane street. Open trenches cut through the pavement, stacks of pipe line the curb, and excavators and construction trucks occupy much of the roadway. South of College, crews are lowering large sections of storm drain concrete pipe into an excavated trench. To the north, workers are preparing lengths of bright yellow natural gas line for installation.
Both crews are working against the calendar to complete the projects before Hanby and Emerson Elementary schools open Aug. 18, when normal traffic returns to the area. That deadline adds urgency to work already squeezing drivers, residents, and construction equipment into a tight Uptown corridor.
Barricades block through traffic at nearby intersections, forcing drivers to detour around the work zone. The closures also limit direct access to homes along Vine Street and may require residents to make alternative parking arrangements while crews work.
Traffic in the surrounding residential neighborhood is also affected as motorists seek alternate routes around Vine. Drivers should use nearby north-south streets and allow extra time when traveling through the area.
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