Roop Street to be widened this summer

A year after transportation commissioners delayed a decision on whether to follow through with a spendy plan to widen Carson City's congested Roop Street, supervisors are scheduled to approve a contract today to get at least a portion of the project moving.

City transportation officials expect the nearly $1.8 million widening of Roop Street from Winnie Lane to Beverly Drive to start in the first week of July and end the first week of September.

The section needs to be widened to accommodate other transportation projects, said Carson City Development Services Director Andy Burnham, and the city wanted it done before a new Wal-Mart store slated to open North Carson City late this year creates even more traffic.

The widening plan tabled last year called for $7.5 million to $8.5 million to expand the street from two lanes to four all the way from Winnie Lane south to Fifth Street.

In order to spread the traffic that now clogs the city's main north/south arterials, the city still plans to complete the whole project, along with an extension of North Stewart Street. Just not all at once.

The section of Roop Street slated for construction this summer needed to be done first to accommodate the new Stewart Street, which will likely be extended to Moody Lane next year.

The next section of Roop Street to be widened, from Beverly Drive to Washington Street, will likely be done within five to 10 years. The third and final section of the street to swell to four lanes, from Washington Street to Fifth Street, will happen in 10 to 15 years.

Carson City commuters, however, won't have to wait another decade and a half for traffic relief. Deputy City Engineer John Flansberg said next year's projects, which include the Stewart Street project and the widening of Fairview Drive, will create a noticeable difference in traffic flow.

"Once North Stewart Street is in, we'll have a nice, working alternative," he said.

The stretch of Roop Street to be expanded from two lanes to four, from Winnie Lane to Beverly Drive, could be closed off in sections or in its entirety at times throughout the job, said Flansberg. Detours will reroute traffic to Carson Street.

Flansberg said a meeting next week with construction company Marv McQueary Excavating Inc. will give the city a better idea of what to expect during construction.

n Contact reporter Cory McConnell at cmcconnell@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1217.

Be there for the decision

What: Carson City Board of Supervisors meeting

When: 8:30 a.m. today

Where: Sierra Room of the Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William St.