Opelika Road is starting to look different.
Decorative brick crosswalks, medians and streetlights are starting to appear. Phase I of the Renew Opelika Road project is going well, according to Kevin Cowper, assistant city manager for the City of Auburn.
According to Cowper, Renew Opelika Road covers the area from Gay Street to city limits.
Cowper said Phase I takes place between Gay and Ross Streets and is designed to beautify and improve the functionality of the area. He said the area of Opelika Road between downtown and the Auburn Mall has fallen into disrepair, and the purpose of the project is to revitalize the area.
"It's a critical commercial corridor, but over the years, it has seen some decline," Cowper said. "The infrastructure is old and a lot of the stores that were once there have closed, and there's now a lot of vacant and abandoned buildings and underutilized property. And we want that corridor to be a vital, vibrant area that looks nice and contributes to the economy of the city."
David Dorton, director of public affairs for the City of Auburn, said a lot of planning went into the project, and it is an important commercial area in Auburn.
"[Renew Opelika Road is] really a very long-term thing about how we can redevelop the area," Dorton said.
Cowper said the Opelika Road area was the city's first commercial area, and needed to be updated.
Cowper said much of the work for Phase I has gone toward fixing the area's infrastructure, adding crosswalks and medians that improve the aesthetic and pedestrian access, as well as improved lighting.
Cowper also said there have been zoning changes and incentives to attract new businesses to the area that allow a faster approval process, as well as relaxed some standards. He said new tenants such as Mugshots have already come in.
"All in all, we've made it easier to redevelop the property in that corridor," Cowper said.
There have not been any major setbacks, according to Cowper, however the first project is approximately one month behind schedule because of weather delays. He said they try to time projects so that they will be going on when there are less people in town, however.
Cowper said building the crosswalks was time-consuming because they had to build them in sections so traffic could still flow through the area.
Dorton said they have not had many complaints about the construction.
"We've heard from a few folks who were stuck in traffic," Dorton said.
Dorton said they have tried to keep the information about potential delays and construction updated through press releases and social media.
Cowper said construction workers will return in approximately one month to put down permanent striping on the road and again later in the fall for landscaping in the medians and along the street.
Work has started on the next part of Renew Opelika Road, which near the mall, at the corner of Opelika Road and University Drive. Cowper said they are adding dual left turn lanes and a sidewalks, as well as piping the open ditch near the mall entrance.
"The intersection will look similar to the College and Shug Jordan intersection when it's finished," Cowper said.
Cowper said the goal of the project is to improve the opportunities along Opelika Road.
"If you're a student and you live in the downtown area and you want to go from downtown to the mall, we want you to drive down that corridor, we want you to stop there and eat at a restaurant, and have a nice experience driving in that area," Cowper said.
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