City Manager: DOT Will Give Funds for Washington Square, Lower Thames Street Projects

Newport City Manager Edward Lavallee announced Wednesday that the Department of Transportation will provide the necessary funds to complete phase three of the Washington Square restoration project. Meanwhile, the DOT will also allow the city to keep the $450,000 originally promised for Lower Thames Street improvements.

The news comes two weeks after to transfer that $450,000 to Washington Square to help fill a $522,523 shortfall in the final phase of the project. At the time, Lavallee cited concerns that if the city didn't use the $450,000, the DOT would take it back since it's gone unused for nearly seven years.

Council members at the time were surprised by the proposal, and called for Lavallee to come back to them with alternative means to fill that shortfall, as well an action plan for moving the Lower Thames Street project forward.

At the Council meeting Wednesday, Lavallee noted that the DOT promised a total of about $950,000 for both projects, following a meeting with city officials. He said the city explained to the DOT that cutting $500,000 out of phase three of the Washington Square project would mean not finishing the enhancement work that has already been started, including covering some of the sidewalks in bluestone.

"We spent some time discussing the significance of Washington Square, and they recognized it as an enhancement project," Lavallee said. "We explained that if we were to trim the project by $500,000, we'd be compromising the integrity of the enhanced design."

The city manager said they also told DOT officials about the renewed initiative to begin the streetscape project for Lower Thames Street and how the stakeholders in that area are interested in moving it forward.

"We asked them to save that funding for us, the $450,000, so we can initiate that project in the near future and get it up again," he said.

Regarding phase three of the Washington Square project, Lavallee said that the operational plan calls for the design work to be completed this fall and for a bid to be awarded sometime in November. Construction of phase three, he said, should begin in early spring and be completed by the Fourth of July, barring any interruptions.

Councilmen Stephen Waluk and Charles Duncan questioned how the repaving of Touro Street factored into that timeline, with Duncan noting again that "it's almost a third world street."

Department of Public Services Director Bill Riccio reported that most of the streetscape repairs should be done by that July 4 deadline, but that once a contractor is brought on board, he can try to get them to do that portion of it.

"If all goes according to plan," Riccio said, "the DOT will give us the ok to bid work, then the work can start in the spring."