Orem plans street closure

OREM — Drivers in Orem this weekend will need to practice patience while getting from here to there in yet another section of the city.

A small section of Sandhill Road right off of University Parkway will be closed from 10 p.m. Saturday until the evening May 1.

So drivers with a hankering for McDonald's or Subway or people who need to buy groceries at Wal-Mart will have to head up to 400 West by the Krispy Kreme doughnut shop and sneak in the back way to the businesses.

Although it may be a pain for 72 hours, it's an attempt to keep the city's roads in the best condition, preventing more massive repairs later, city officials say.

Sandhill Road is one project in the city's $10 million summerlong road improvement plan.

"Every year the city does capital improvements," said Orem City Engineer Ed Gifford. This year is one of the busiest in Orem's history, he said.

Two of the most noticeable projects already in progress are at 1600 North and 800 North. At both streets, crews have been closing lanes, diverting traffic and restructuring intersections.

"When you drive around to different municipalities in Utah County and look at what they offer, Orem is one of the top-notch cities (with) really good maintenance of the streets," Gifford said.

Each year, Orem workers identify streets that are looking like they need some repair or pose hazards for the drivers.

Then, officials place them on a list of roads to be upgraded.

Sandhill Road met those requirements, although only the front section by University Parkway will be tackled this weekend. The rest will be worked on later in the summer with some federal funding.

"The road's just bad," said Stephen Perkins, project manager for Orem. "We'll put back a median, just try to do it a little bit better. We'll be digging down 12 inches, tearing the whole road out, putting in sub-base and bringing it back up."

With such a big project, workers can't keep even one lane open for local traffic.

"To have a good finished product, we have to shut it down," said Sam Kelly, Orem City construction engineer. It's also a safety issue for the crew that will be working 24 hours a day, Kelly said.

Many of the summer projects are complete reconstructs like the Sandhill section, which include tearing out the old road and replacing it, but the rest are overlays, meaning crews will sand down the old edges of the road and add a smooth new asphalt layer.

City officials will keep the Web site updated with a map and information about where crews will be working next. Visit www.orem.org for more information.

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