Blue street

For some North Side residents and businesses, the road to street improvement is bumpy, noisy and frustrating. In May, the city began a major redesign and improvement project on Crestline.

Tom Arnold, city director of engineering services, said changing a two lane county road into a three-lane roadway is a big project. Crews are installing a concrete intersection at Crestline and Francis as part of a larger project to install a sanitary sewer system and reconstruct Crestline Street from Decatur Avenue to 300 feet north of Lincoln Road.

“We’re adding bike lanes, sidewalks and other safety improvements,” Arnold said. “We’ve done our best to maintain access.”

But the work has hurt some businesses.

“We’ve had our phones knocked out eight times,” said Terry Hefling, assistant manager of NAPA Auto Parts on Francis. “People can’t get into or out of our business. Deliveries take twice as long.” She describes the feedback she’s heard from other Crestline neighbors as “a lot of cussing.”

Across the street, Kulwant Singh, owner of G&B Grocery, estimates his sales have dropped by 30 to 40 percent. During a recent visit to his store, the building shook with the noise of the big machinery outside.

Down the road at Oasis Espresso, assistant manager James Mulvania said they’ve also seen a significant drop in sales. “We’ve had to cut back employee hours,” he said.

Unfortunately, the street crews don’t appear to be latte drinkers. “Haven’t sold them any drinks that I’m aware of,” he said.

The project’s impact has spread to side streets.

One block off Francis on Stone Street, a line of cars sat waiting at a stop sign – all trying to bypass Francis and Crestline. A large, unoccupied steamroller was idling. Noise and exhaust filled the air on this usually sleepy street. A half hour later the line of cars had abated, but the steamroller still idled, unoccupied.

Residents of Miller Park, an adult mobile home community on Crestline, have been hit hard by the project. The biggest complaint isn’t the dust or noise; it’s the lack of communication between workers and neighbors.

“If we knew which roads would be closed, we could avoid them,” said Teresa McDermott, a Miller Park resident.

So many side streets off Crestline have been closed that neighbors are never sure which roads will be open, or when. “Some days you feel like sitting down and crying,” said Miller Park resident Virginia Danner. “If we just knew what direction to go. We get to where we kind of have to laugh.”

McDermott appreciates that workers keep dust down by spraying the road, even though it creates mud. “I’ve still got so much sand in my house, it’s like living at the beach,” she said with a laugh.

Both McDermott and Danner are looking forward to having sidewalks on Crestline, and think the newly completed roundabout on Crestline and Lincoln will improve traffic flow. “It looks kind of pretty,” said McDermott.

Arnold said the estimated completion date is Nov. 20 and expressed appreciation for the neighbors’ patience. “They’ve been great,” he said.