Oct. 19. By Dave Vieser. The construction schedule for the widening of West Catawba Avenue in Cornelius from Jetton Road to Hwy. 73 has been moved up by one year according to Deputy Town Manager Wayne Herron.

As recently as June the NCDOT said construction is still several years away from starting.

2026 completion

Under the new timetable construction will begin in 2024 and be completed sometime in 2026, rather than 2027.

“That’s a great thing and we’re really excited about this,” Herron said. The NCDOT has put money towards right-of-way acquisitions “because it’s so much.”

Wayne Herron

Pricetag

The project is valued at more than $52 million.

He currently estimates that utility relocation will begin late this year and will be concluded in 2024. “This will take some time.”

Utilities will not be buried

Plans to relocate all utilities underground were unplugged because of the cost. However, utility lines both above and underground must still be relocated outside of the widened road right of way which in itself is a time-consuming part of the overall project.

Phase 2 widening of West Catawba has been a major issue for years. Prior to late 2014 it was estimated to be a $12.5 million project.