Red Arrow Highway Road Construction

UNION PIER — Construction season for the Union Pier Corridor Improvements Project officially resumed on Monday, March 22.

The Berrien County Road Department announced that the contractor will be working along the west side of the roadway for the first couple of weeks, and the southbound lane of Red Arrow will be closed with southbound traffic pushed into the center turn lane. Town Line Ave will remain open during this time.

Items anticipated to be completed in the spring of 2021 include concrete sidewalks and ramps; a non-motorized pathway; and streetscaping items including plants, trees, and furnishings.

A series of light poles were installed along Red Arrow Highway near Union PIer's central business district in late winter.

Architect John Chipman, a member of the Chikaming Township Planning Commission, recently made a presentation about the Union Pier project and upcoming streetscape work to the Rotary Club of Harbor Country.

He said the project started 2018 with a sketch of the Townline/Union Pier Road area, with the Antero Group hired to work on the plan and to develop streetscape concepts incorporating "an eclectic, fun kind of a feel to it with some natural finishes and colors."

"At the time that the sketch was done the idea was to go to three lanes. I had no idea at the time that the County Road Department was starting to plan on a three-lane re-do of Red Arrow Highway," he said.

Work completed in 2020 included paving and transforming Red Arrow Highway to three lanes, installation of curbs and gutters, and what Chipman called "a 100-year sewer project" to restore a worn-out system in Union Pier, Lakeside, Harbert and Sawyer.

The streetscape elements going in this spring are expected to "encourage business and economic development, better traffic, better safety."

Chipman said plans to improve the Red Arrow Highway corridor are part of a county-wide effort that includes a 10-foot wide linear park (which includes the aforementioned non-motorized pathway in Union Pier) that ultimately will run through the entire county when completed (including a portion from Bridgman to New Buffalo).

Part of the Union Pier project is a trailhead facility across from the Black Currant Bakery thanks to support from The Pokagon Fund.

"There's going to be toilets, parking for Union Pier. You can park, use the rest room, shop, have coffee, it's going to be wonderful," Chipman said.

He said Red Arrow Highway construction and improvements in the Harbert area are next.

Chipman noted that Red Arrow Highway has already been redone from Bridgman to Sawyer Road Road as four lanes (due mainly to State Park traffic).

"The piece they're working on right now (2021) is from Sawyer Road down to just past the Harbert Post Office … It's going to be three lanes," he said.

Chipman said a pedestrian sidewalk along the east side to Red Arrow Highway with lights is part of the plan.

"On the other side of the road will be the (10-foot wide) linear parkway. It will be separated from the road with a 10-foot landscaped strip."

Chipman said there also are tentative plans to have a trailhead next to Harbert Community Park.

In 2022 Chipman said Red Arrow Highway and its immediate surroundings will be re-paved and improved from the spot south of Harbert's Post Office "almost down to Lakeside."

"2023 will be Lakeside all the way down to Whistle Stop," he added. "So there is time for planning, for thoughtful development, for engagement with all of those people that live in lakeside that are interested," he said.

Chipman said the last portion of the project will stretch from Timothy's to U.S. 12, and also will be three lanes.

He also mentioned that there are plans to transform the former hardware store in Sawyer into an event center.

And Chipman said the County Road Department is aware that Sawyer Road from Red Arrow Highway to downtown Sawyer is currently not very pedestrian friendly.

For updated information regarding the Red Arrow Highway Union Pier Corridor Improvements Project, visit https://gow ightman.com/project-up dates/red-arrow-high way-union-pier-corridor -improvements-project.

Source: https://www.harborcountry-news.com/news/construction-season-under-way-on-red-arrow-highway-in-union-pier/article_7770e783-168c-562e-a4e1-e0cd114dfb1f.html

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