Rochester's Main Street Makeover Named a Top "Concrete Project" in State

The city received an Award of Excellence for last year's reconstruction of Rochester Road.

The Michigan Concrete Association has bestowed Rochester with an Award of Excellence for last year's Main Street Makeover that ended with the complete reconstruction of Rochester Road.  Along with the city, the project team for the reconstruction was recognized; that team included Angelo Iafrate Construction Company; engineers MDOT-Oakland TSC and Fishbeck, Thompson, Carr & Huber, Inc.; and concrete supplier Superior Materials. The association applauded the collaborative effort of the project. "A major key to the success of this project was the excellent coordination between the city, Iafrate’s paving crew, the Quality Control testing firm and the concrete supplier," a press release about the award stated. "Many late nights were spent …

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Stop! That Sign is Here To Stay (at Least for Now)

Several temporary stop signs were installed at the start of the Main Street Makeover; which ones should remain?

Part of University Drive in downtown Rochester closed temporarily on Wednesday as workers painted a bright white "stop" at the intersection of Water Street. A temporary four-way stop at University and Water was installed at the start of the Main Street Makeover earlier this year; this week, city leaders said the four-way stop will stay until they can gather feedback in post-Makeover times about its usefulness. "We are observing it now without construction to see if we want to propose to keep it permanent," said City Manager Jaymes Vettraino. Four-way stops at Pine and Fourth streets and Pine and Third streets, as well as a three-way stop at Diversion and South streets, are also going to stay for awhile. "We would be happy for feedback," …

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Ray Henry

1:23 pm on Wednesday, February 27, 2013

I'm a little late to this discussion, however, I totally agree that that stop sign on W. Third and Pine should stay. W. Third has way too many speeding cars who use W. Third to avoid University. I'd like to add a stop sign at W. Third and Taylor (currently a two-way stop). The cars on W. Third should have to stop if only to keep the speeds down to the limit.   more ›

Thank-You, Rochester: All 5 Lanes of Main Street Now Open

Just in time for Black Friday and Small Business Saturday, the Main Street Makeover reaches a milestone.

Seven months after the first construction barrel was brought into downtown Rochester in April, all five lanes of Main Street opened to traffic late Wednesday — just in time for Thanksgiving.   "Today's a really, really special day because we're getting our five lanes back," said Rochester City Manager Jaymes Vettraino during a short "barrel-moving" ceremony Wednesday afternoon downtown.  City leaders, including Rochester Mayor Stuart Bikson and councilmembers Jeff Cuthbertson, Cathy Daldin, Steve Sage and Kim Russell, gathered at the corner of Fourth and Main streets to remove the last of the barrels from the road. Passersby cheered and waved; Vettraino's own children even had fun kicking the barrels after they were moved onto the sidewalk…

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Say Goodbye to the Barrels This Week in Downtown Rochester

Here's what you've been waiting for, Rochester: the end of the Main Street Makeover. To mark the occasion, we're taking a look back.

Just in time for Small Business Saturday, the barrels blocking most of downtown Rochester's Main Street are scheduled to be moved out of the way this week. The road is set to fully re-open to traffic on Friday, though at a recent Rochester City Council meeting, city leaders hinted that the event could happen as early as Wednesday. Benches and trash cans were installed last week; streetlights are set to be installed this week.   The re-opening is more than seven months in the making: the Main Street Makeover began in April. It involved the removal and rebuilding of the road from the Paint Creek Bridge north of University Drive to the Clinton River Bridge south of downtown. The project was budgeted at about $5.6 million.  Here's a look back…

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Frank D.

6:46 pm on Wednesday, November 28, 2012

During the X-Mas lighting ceremony, I noticed that all the side walk light posts power outlets on the East side of Main Street had the waterproof cover not installed..Wires were exposed, this is a code violation and they get away with it ...I hope this has been resolved by now... Similar unfinished conditions on the intersection of Avon and Livernois (bridge replacement project). Yesterday, the …   more ›

The End Is Near (For the Main Street Makeover, That Is)

Our favorite construction project should be complete by Nov. 23. Here are the five things that are left to do.

Remember back in April when the Main Street Makeover began? It's been a long road, so to speak, but we're nearly at an end. The project is scheduled to be complete — meaning all lanes open — on Friday, Nov. 23. Here are the five things that need to be done before this project can be marked "Complete." A lot of historical finds — from soda bottles to human bones — happened during the Makeover. But while most were removed, one is staying right where it is to become its own attraction. A well or cistern — the city is still researching to find out which it is — from pre-1890s will be covered with plexiglass and have a seat wall on two sides for viewing. An educational sign will also be near by. On the brighter side of things, new street lights…

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It Was The Last Water Main Standing: Downtown Makeover Hits Milestone

Surrounded in darkness, workers remove final piece of Rochester's 117-year-old water main.

Here's an important event in the ongoing Main Street Makeover: the end of a century-old water main era. At 5:04 a.m. Thursday, the final piece of new water main went online in downtown Rochester. The water main replacement was one major part of the ongoing Main Street Makeover in downtown Rochester. That final water main replacement marked the official ending of the old water main line in the city.  The original water main, between University and Second streets, was installed in 1895; the extensions north of University and south of Second were newer.  "The City got its full 117 years of service life out of the original cast iron water main," said Rochester City Manager Jaymes Vettraino, who added that the city "looks forward to getting …

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Old Towne Road Near Library Closing This Week

The Rochester Hills Public Library will still be accesible, but you'll have to take University Drive to get there.

As the Main Street Makeover in downtown Rochester continues, the work is now focused north of University Drive. This week, Old Towne Road will be closed at Rochester Road near the hub of the construction work. Old Towne Road connects Rochester Road with University Drive; it curves around by the U.S. Post Office and the Rochester Hills Public Library. Both the Post Office and the library will be open and accessible during the closure — customers will just have to access them via University Drive. The closure will begin at 7 a.m. Tuesday and end at 7 p.m. Friday. The Main Street Makeover is the ongoing rebuilding of Rochester Road through downtown Rochester. For details and an official detour map, visit our Main Street Makeover page on …

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David Gifford

4:20 pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012

We're heading down the final stretch of the project!!   more ›

A Patch of History

What Will Happen to Prehistoric Human Bones Found Under Rochester?

While the remains discovered under Main Street remain in the state's care, history sheds light on where they came from, and the director of a Native American service group explains what should happen next.

Rochester’s Main Street redevelopment has something in common with similar projects under way across the country: workers and on-site archaeologists discovering prehistoric human remains. In early August, construction workers operating a backhoe in downtown Rochester at the intersection of Third and Main streets hit bone buried just a few feet deep in the ground — hidden for decades under asphalt and concrete. It’s a story playing out across the country as redevelopment projects and road construction fill the season with orange cones and traffic back-ups. In June, road workers reconstructing the main thoroughfare through downtown Oak Harbor, Washington, struck a burial site with Native American remains. In July, the Texas Department of …

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Kate Wolos

12:06 pm on Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Here here!   more ›

Saturday's Yard Sale is Last Chance to Buy a Piece of Your Downtown

You can buy bricks, signs — and now, pieces of trolley track — at the sale.

Here's Your Front Row Seat to History, Rochester

Video shows the excavation of century-old trolley tracks buried underneath Main Street.

On Monday afternoon, remains of trolley days gone by were removed from underneath Main Street in Rochester. The tracks, once part of the Detroit United Railway that stretched from Detroit to Flint, were discovered 10 days ago north of University Drive near the Rochester Medical Center and Paint Creek bridge. The railway's powerhouse and car barns were located where the Atallah Heart Center now stands. On Monday traffic slowed near the site as workers used heavy machinery to un-Earth the railroad tracks.  Want a commemorative piece of the trolley tracks? They will be cut into 6-inch sections and sold for $25 at a Downtown Yard Sale sponsored by the Rochester Downtown Development Authority this Saturday.  

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