I-44 Construction Thread

[fotd]

Evidently, the COT is shutting down 51st from Harvard to Marion for several daze while they reconstruct the water line they keep busting on the east side of 51st. When the center there was demolished (by ODOT?) they left many of the old lines which keep busting every time a back hoe digs in. Chili's, Sushi Train, Bodeans, Mazios...all had to close Friday night.

Anyway, if you live between 51st and 61st and Pittsburgh to Harvard keep your kids off the streets.

major cluster f*&K

[YoungTulsan]

They pretty much shut that stretch of road down effectively already, making it impassable by not providing turn lanes at Harvard.  It is a clusterf*!# indeed.

[MsProudSooner]

51st was open between Harvard and Yale this morning at 7:15.

I wonder why they don't just close the eastbound Harvard exit.  It would ease the strain on 51st considerably. 

[cmoreno]

there's some good notes on the heller neighborhood website (http://www.hellerpark.blogspot.com/) RE: a couple of recent public meetings w/ ODOT.  ODOT's website is www.odot.org/meetings. Daily construction schedules are available on the ODOT website also.

...not sure who it was from ODOT that i met, but he let me know that they would post their presentation, as well as PDF maps of the new on/off ramps, the sound wall, where basically everything was going to go, which roads were going to be 1- and 2-way, etc. ...the handouts that they gave us were quite detailed. 
http://www.odot.org/meetings/a2010/100326/index.htm -- downloads on the left sidebar.

[Nik]

Thanks for letting us know. Glad to hear the south side is getting a soundwall.

[dsjeffries]

It's been a long time since they were announced, but ODOT and GKFF/TCF released an image of the proposed Gateway markers they want on I-44. They're deco and look great! They're being supplemented by black powder coating on the lighting and monotube highway signage (the new style ODOT has installed on 169 & I-44) and extensive landscaping.

Two 60-foot towers will be at Riverside and four 30-foot towers will be at Harvard.





Favorite quote from the TW story: "They both saw the value and understood the significance of it. Otherwise, Tulsa would end up with a rather vanilla-looking stretch of highway, right through the heart of the city."

Art deco monuments at the Riverside Drive and Lewis Avenue bridges are among some of the beautification enhancements proposed to complement the $360 million Interstate 44 widening project.


"Everyone is real excited about creating a gateway and really turning the highway into a signature project," said Jason Dickinson, landscape architect for Alaback Design, which is working with the construction contractor.

The effort to provide additional improvements to the highway project is a proposed partnership between the state, Tulsa Community Foundation and the George Kaiser Family Foundation.

"I'm thrilled that we're going to have this stretch of highway improvements through the center of our city," said Phil Lakin, CEO of the Tulsa Community Foundation.

While the agreement for the added enhancements is not yet finalized, the discussions have been that the state, Tulsa Community Foundation and the Kaiser foundation would each contribute up to $2 million, Lakin said.

The Tulsa Community Foundation is still raising funds for its portion, and the state has not yet identified the funding source for its portion.

A state official emphasized that the reason the Oklahoma Department of Transportation is doing the widening project is to improve "one of the most dangerous" interstates in the state.

"The section from Yale Avenue to Riverside Drive has certainly logged more accidents than any other interstate location," said Kenna Mitchell, ODOT spokeswoman.

"Part
of that reason is because it was originally built as a byway around Tulsa before the interstate system was started in the 1950s, so it wasn't designed as an interstate," she said.

Lakin said the private sector realizes the focus of ODOT projects is safety and "utilitarian design."

"So that's why we stepped in and wanted to make it aesthetically pleasing and more representative of the culture and beauty that Tulsa has to offer," he said. "We want to take it above and beyond what ODOT will do."

Lakin said that as part of the enhancement process, "we wanted to really identify what sets Tulsa apart, and art deco is always the first to come up."

ODOT Division Engineer Randle White agreed, saying, "When I think of art deco, I think of Tulsa" and noting the vast amount of art deco design downtown.

"We've been having good discussions on the enhancements proposal. This effort will make for a really good public-private partnership," White said.

ODOT does have included in its $360 million plan such items as sound walls, lighting and fencing.

A sampling of some of the art deco design can be found in the sound walls at the ongoing Harvard Avenue area improvements on I-44.

The state's use of art deco design elements come from an aesthetics report prepared by Alaback and submitted to ODOT, said Dickinson, who created the report.

Lakin said the additional proposed enhancements to the highway project could include six art deco towers - two 60-foot towers on either side of I-44 at Riverside Drive and four 30-foot towers, two on each side of the Lewis Avenue bridge. The improvements also would include enhancements to the lighting, monotube highway signposts and fencing provided by ODOT, along with added landscaping, he said.

Lakin said enhancements also would be seen on some of the city streets near I-44.

Former state Transportation Commissioner Guy Berry and state Secretary of Transportation Gary Ridley have played key roles in pushing the enhancement efforts along, Lakin said.

"They both saw the value and understood the significance of it. Otherwise, Tulsa would end up with a rather vanilla-looking stretch of highway, right through the heart of the city."


Proposed I-44 enhancements

   * Two 60-foot art deco monuments

   * Four 30-foot art deco monuments

   * Black powder coating for lighting

   * Black powder coating for monotube signposts

   * Black vinyl-covered chain-link fencing

   * Landscaping

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=334&articleid=20110116_11_A1_CUTLIN189430

[patric]

If they light those spires, lets hope it's some sedate internal lighting, and not flood lighting like it was some ugly billboard.

[patric]

Also, how's it going to look once they put in impact attenuators, like those big yellow Crash Barrels you commonly see along pillars and guardrails?

[dsjeffries]

Looks to me like there's some kind of internal lighting involved. How cool would it look to have a soft-glowing art deco pillar greet you as you cross the river?

[TheArtist]

Yaaaay...Art Deco!    Some more good advertising for our museum effort   and for dsjeffries downtown Deco District  

[Ibanez]

Also, how's it going to look once they put in impact attenuators, like those big yellow Crash Barrels you commonly see along pillars and guardrails?

I doubt they need them at these locations. Drunk cheerleaders from Owasso rarely make it that far "South"

[SXSW]

Looks great.  I'm hoping the 'landscaping' portion includes lots of trees planted in the right of way on both side of the interstate and not just at the interchanges.  What they did at the IDL SE interchange with all of the pine trees is a good example to follow.  

I'll be interested to see what they (Kaiser Foundation/TCF) have planned for the new I-244 bridge as well.

On a side note, does anyone know the status of the bike/jogging trail along the north side of I-44?  Right now the completed portion goes from 42nd & Fulton to Yale, and then stops.  Is the plan still to extend the trail west all the way to the river?  

[Townsend]

Heads up for the weekend on Harvard by I44.

http://tinyurl.com/45bvfmo

If you use Harvard Ave near I-44 you will want to find a short-term alternate route starting Friday evening.

Oklahoma Department of Transportation says they plan to close all lanes north and southbound on Harvard Ave. at I-44 from 7 p.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Monday for bridge demolition.

Construction crews will then begin to remove the old sections of the east and westbound I-44 bridges. With plans to completely replace them.

During the temporary closing ODOT has planned detours around the work area.

Southbound Harvard Ave. traffic will detour to the frontage road to Lewis Ave.

Northbound Harvard Ave. traffic will detour to 51st Street to either Lewis Ave. or Yale Ave.

The westbound I-44 on-ramp from Harvard Ave. will remain closed until further notice.

This work is part of a larger $48 million project to widen I-44 from four lanes to six in the Harvard corridor.

The entire $360 million widening project on I-44 from Riverside Dr. to Yale Ave. is scheduled to be completed  in 2013.

[YoungTulsan]

I'm shaking my head at a comment on the OKC's Own website story:

http://www.newson6.com/Global/story.asp?S=13919812

dustyoutlaw
2 hours ago
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I knew it would come to this. They've had Harvard and I-44 torn down for over a year. And now here it is........."you can't get there from here". What an abortion this whole thing has and continue to be.

They are closing Harvard from 7pm Friday to 6am Monday to demolish two bridges they are replacing.  How more seamlessly could they do that, you absolute moron?

Sorry, I'm not signing up for their comments section - I'm just having trouble understanding how some people manage to tie their shoes in the morning.

[BKDotCom]

They wear velcro Kangaroo's


... Just saw the part of this thread concerning the Art Deco spires..
They look great