Upton Drive Reconstruction Project

July 21, 2024 Project Update

This past week, Kalin Construction, their subcontractors, and CSX Transportation made significant progress on Phase I of the project.  Upton Drive, from its southerly limits to just south of the Marina Drive/Virginia Court intersection is nearly complete, and underground construction is now underway in the Upton Drive/Marina Drive/Virginia Court intersection.  As noted in the update last week, traffic will be maintained through the intersection using flaggers, likely resulting in travel delays.  This is because at times, the depth of the excavation will only allow for a single lane of traffic moving in one direction.  Please allow for additional time when you need to travel through the construction zone.

During the progress meeting this past Friday, Kalin Construction communicated that traffic access through the Upton Drive/Marina Drive/Virginia Court intersection is expected to be maintained from the north (Momany Drive) for the next several weeks.  Kalin expects to be in a position to open Upton Drive from Whitwam Drive to the Whirlpool Parking across from the older Whirlpool St. Joseph Technical Center building, north of the railroad tracks, in the coming week for Whirlpool parking lot access only.

The work south of the St. Joseph River next to the Lakeview Terrace High Rise is now substantially complete.  The combined sewer overflow (CSO) structure there was eliminated while the area was disturbed to install the new sanitary force main under the St. Joseph River.  This marks a significant milestone in the City’s decades long CSO compliance program.  The next step in the CSO compliance program is the Early Action CSO Storage Project near the Public Works facility, scheduled to begin this fall.

While this is likely stating the obvious, the coming four-to-six-weeks will likely prove to be the most inconvenient period of time during the project for the residents and public that need to travel through the Upton Drive/Marina Drive/Virginia Court intersection.  The project team thanks you for your patience, and as always, please feel free to contact Project Engineer Tim Drews (telephone: 269-876-9286, email: tdrews@abonmarche.com) or City Engineer Tim Zebell (telephone: 269-985-0339 with questions or concerns).

Project Description & General Information

The Upton Drive Reconstruction Project is scheduled to begin on March 25, 2024.

The project limits include Upton Drive from its southerly end near the St. Joseph River to Momany Drive.  The primary purpose of the project is to reconstruct the roadway, install new storm sewer to improve drainage, and replace the sanitary force main from the Edgewater Lift Station to the sanitary sewer interceptor sewer south of the St. Joseph River.  While the roadway is removed, the existing sanitary sewer and water mains located under it will be replaced.  The project also includes reconfiguration of the roadway to allow the installation of a non-motorized path.

The scope is more complex than most reconstruction projects as it includes three utility crossings under the CSX railroad tracks, a directional bore under the St. Joseph River, and changing the pavement width.  This requires coordinating multiple agreements with CSX.  Several external funding sources are also involved including a Transportation Economic Development Fund Category A grant from the Michigan Department of Transportation, a Clean Water State Revolving Loan (CWSRF) loan, and Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) loan.  A portion of the CWSRF and DWSRF funding will come in the form of grants rather than loans.  The balance of funding beyond the external sources listed above will come from the City’s Street Improvement Fund, Water Improvement Fund, and Sewer Fund.

The project is expected to be underway the entire construction season with completion expected in early November.

The supporting documents section has links to more detailed information that can be downloaded, a brief description of the documents follows.

• Initial Public Notice - provides a detailed description of the project and answer frequently asked questions.
• Selected Alternative - the selected alternative concept plan that was posted during the public input phase.
• Pavement Marking - Signage Plan – provides a more detailed view of the plans extracted from the plans as bid.
• Initial Public Meeting Presentation – a pdf of the power point presented during the March 6, 2024 public meeting.
• Upton Phasing Plan - Anticipated dates of the phasing plan as of March 12, 2014.