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Mt. Hope Reconstruction Update

On Thursday, February 11, The City of Rochester gave a presentation and updated us on the upcoming Mt. Hope Avenue reconstruction. Approximately 100 people attended and got a firsthand look at what will be taking place during the next few months. On hand were members of the city’s engineering department, state DOT, U of R, and many of the area’s business owners.

We would like to thank Mark McAnany from Bergman Associates and Paul Way from City of Rochester DES for putting together this presentation. For those of you who weren’t able to attend, here is a general overview.

  1. East Henrietta Road reconstruction: Road work will begin on East Henrietta Road from Mt. Hope Avenue to South Avenue this March. The work will include replacing storm water drainage including new catch basins, water mains, curbing, sidewalks, and a complete tear out and rebuilding of the roadway. The city will be replacing the current street lights with more decorative “tear drop” style.

    The utility poles will remain as the project does not have the funding required to relocate services underground. The final part of this project will include closing off Fort Hill Terrace to thru traffic. This will make the intersection at Crittenden, E. Henrietta and Mt. Hope safer for pedestrians. People who live on Westview, Southview and Fort Hill will be able to access Fort Hill from South Avenue as Fort Hill will be converted to a two way street. This will also allow members of South Presbyterian Church to gain access to their church parking lot. All of the above mentioned work should be completed by September or October of 2010.
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  2. Mt. Hope Avenue overhead utility relocation: All of the overhead utilities, from Raleigh Street to Elmwood Avenue, will be relocated underground. This work will start around March or April and should be completed by June.
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  3. Access way to eastside businesses: A narrow access road will be installed behind the eastside businesses between McDonald’s and Bordeaux/Abbotts. This access road will be large enough to accommodate traffic in both directions, but will not include a shoulder nor be as wide as a standard city street. The purpose of this road is to allow people to go south from businesses that are north as they will not be able to make a left hand turn onto Mt. Hope the following year. This action was deemed necessary in order to keep the businesses located along this section of Mt. Hope from closing. Part of this work will also include re-landscaping along the back of the property line, installing new decorative fencing to help reduce the sound and lights associated with the businesses. This work is expected to start in May 2010 and be completed by August.
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  4. Mt. Hope reconstruction: The actual reconstruction of Mt. Hope Avenue should begin by September or October of 2010, pending the completion of all right of way takings. All major work will be completed along East Henrietta Road such that traffic interruptions should be minimal. Work will begin along the west side of Mt. Hope as the U of R will be donating 30 or so feet of property to allow for the construction of the new median. There will be a new intersection built close to where Starbucks is currently located. This will allow vehicles to drive into the new development that the U of R will be fostering and also access East Drive, and the parking garage. After the west side of Mt. Hope is rebuilt, work will switch to the east side. This strategy will help limit traffic interruptions and hopefully allow for relatively smooth commutes through the area. All work should be completed by the fall of 2011.
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There will also be some work taking place on the businesses along Mt. Hope, in particular McDonald’s. Currently the owners are close to acquiring a property adjacent to the restaurant which will allow them to build a new restaurant and remove the old one. The new restaurant will have a more upscale appearance. Also there is a new Chipotle Mexican restaurant that should be open by May 2010. This will be the second Chipotle in the greater Rochester area.

Please send your e-mail to umhn@umhn.com

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