Peruvian Avenue upgrade starts

The asphalt street was cut by a saw Tuesday.

On Wednesday, a demolition unit from Burkhardt Construction arrived.

The crew began tearing up a strip of road extending about 6 feet from the existing curb line on the north side of the one-way street between Cocoanut Row and South Lake Drive. The job is more complicated on the north side because curbside drain relocation must be done around an existing water main line, said Tony Sabatino, Burkhardt project manager.

Work began as scheduled on the $1.3 million infrastructure and streetscape renovation of the one-block stretch.

The improvements, to be paid for through an assessment on block residents over 10 years, will add 3-1/2 feet of planting area on both sides of the street.

Plans call for 624 annuals, 31 ylang-ylang trees, 18 cocoanut palms and eight royal palms to be planted on the north and south sides of the 850-foot-long block, which will be resurfaced. New historic-style street lighting also will be installed, along with seashell-embedded Tabby concrete sidewalks.

No on-street parking will be allowed during construction, which will last until Jan. 31. One west-to-east traffic lane will remain open in the center of the street, though motorists may encounter intermittent lane closures during work hours, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

For information, contact Wayne King, Burkhardt project liaison, at 718-2605.