Redesigned Augusta Street will be more pedestrian-friendly, provide more parking - Greenville Journal
Part of Augusta Street is getting a makeover.
A streetscape project from South Main to Field Street is designed to bring the vibrancy of Main Street to Augusta while maintaining the flavor of the historic West End, said Edward Kinney, senior landscape engineer for the city of Greenville. At an earlier public workshop about the project, Kinney said the dynamism of Main Street “kind of peters out.”
Kinney has said that Main Street shows the value of a good streetscape and that Augusta is a natural vector of growth for the city.
Designers from Alta Planning + Design, a national firm that has an office at the corner of Main and Augusta, said Augusta’s 14-foot wide travel lanes would be narrowed to 11 feet to allow for wider sidewalks that would make Augusta more pedestrian-friendly and, perhaps, allow outdoor dining similar to what’s on Main Street.
Blake Sanders, project designer for Alta, said the plan addresses Augusta’s intersection with University Street, a big concern because the intersection creates problems with traffic backups in the morning and evening rush hours. The streetscape plan includes striping and pavement markings that will warn motorists not to block the intersection.
Kinney said the streetscape plan would create more on-street parking because the consultants were able to eliminate some existing deficiencies through the new design.
The city will accept sealed bids until Oct. 13 and the city has set aside $350,000 for the project.