Main Street makeover is being studied

Three roundabouts are part of a preliminary design for a proposed upgrade of some of downtown Lewiston’s busiest streets.

Two of the roundabouts would be immediately east of the Interstate Bridge on Main Street, according to plans presented to the Lewiston City Council at a recent work session.

They would regulate traffic entering and exiting the bridge, as well as Main Street’s intersections with Snake River Avenue and First Street. The third roundabout would be installed at First and D streets.

The city is accepting public comments at reimaginedtlewiston.org and at a meeting at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday at the Lewiston City Library, 411 D St.

The proposed roundabouts are among the potential changes in the plans that will be reviewed by the Idaho Transportation Department and voted on by the Lewiston City Council before a final design is completed.

The street work is part of a larger project to replace, repair and upgrade aging underground infrastructure in downtown.

Two-way traffic would be introduced on Main and D streets. Right now Main Street is one way carrying eastbound traffic between First and 11th streets. D Street runs parallel to Main Street with westbound traffic in that same section. Two-way traffic is anticipated to slow vehicles, allow more visibility for pedestrians at crossings and ease access for motorists.

In addition to rerouting vehicles, the plans contain pedestrian-friendly amenities that would make it easier to hold special events.

Among them are converting the block of Third Street between Morgans’ Alley and the Lewis Clark Hotel that connects Main and D streets into a pedestrian plaza similar to Brackenbury Square.

What’s being called a “festival street” would be created on New Sixth Street just east of Bumper Crop Coffee between Main and F streets. The block would function like a regular road except that the street and sidewalk would all be at the same level, making it easier to close temporarily for activities like festivals.

The city council will get a final update on the project Nov. 25. The city anticipates financing the project with a bond that would go before voters in the spring.

The bond would be configured so property taxes aren’t impacted by the project, said Dustin Johnson, the city of Lewiston public works director, in an email.

The bond would be repaid with a portion of $1.5 million to $2.3 million annually the city has earmarked for repairs and construction of major streets that the city has already been setting aside in its budgets for the last three years.

Several business leaders spoke in favor of the project at the council work session.

Tobe Finch, corporate president of Happy Day Corp., said he’s willing to go through the pain of the construction because of the upgrade’s benefits.

One of Happy Day’s restaurants, Main Street Grill, and its headquarters are along Main Street in downtown Lewiston in the project area.

“It’s beautiful,” Finch said. “I’ve got a great vision of what that’s going to look like and the life that it would bring to our community, to the people that come from (U.S.) Highway 12 that discover this cool downtown.”

Tami Meyers, the board chairperson of Beautiful Downtown Lewiston, had a similar take.

“I want to express my cautious excitement (for the project),” said Meyers, an agent with Team B.M.C. Silvercreek Realty Group.

Even though the scale of the work might seem “daunting,” she said, “I do recognize the need for replacing our aging infrastructure.”

“If we delay that, it could become very costly, risking that continuous cycle of patchwork repairs as we go along,” Meyers said. “That would disrupt businesses and strain taxpayer dollars more excessively than a project that’s all inclusive.”

Like Finch and Meyers, Dan Mader, the owner of the building where Bumper Crop Coffee is located, said he supports the project.

Much of the infrastructure in downtown Lewiston is at the end of its functional and useful life, and, in many cases, is at capacity, he said.

“There’s just no way around it,” Mader said. “It’s time to do it.”

Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.