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City of Walker - Kinney Avenue Reconstruction

Important Information

Kinney Avenue will be reconstructed from Lake Michigan Drive to Leonard Street. Improvements to the corridor include constructing a center turn lane, adding concrete curb and gutter, replacing the roadside ditches with storm sewer, and adding sidewalk on the east side of the roadway.

Road reconstruction is anticipated to begin the week of April 29 and be complete by the end of September. Construction work will generally be conducted between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, with possible work on Saturdays.

Access/Traffic: Kinney Avenue will be closed to through traffic but will stay accessible to residents in the immediate construction area and embedded neighborhoods. There may be times when access will be limited to either north or south as storm sewer is installed. Driveway access may also be interrupted for short periods of time but will be restored by the end each workday. For traffic that does not have a destination within the construction zone, Wilson Avenue will be the posted detour for this project.

Mail: The contractor will make the necessary arrangements with postal service to assure uninterrupted mail delivery. This will likely be with a pool of temporary mailboxes at either end of the project.

Garbage Pickup: The contractor will maintain uninterrupted garbage pickup. Please have your bin at the end of the driveway the night before pickup.

Contact

P&N Engineer
Tyler DeNooyer, PE, Project Manager
616-481-0693

P&N Construction Observer
Phil Kamp
616-522-5900

Contractor
Brenner Excavating
Ellen Bentley
269-793-7531

City
Scott Conners, PE, City Engineer
City of Walker
616-791-6792

April 23, 2024

Progress has been made on the approximately 12 to 15-foot-deep storm sewer main this week.  See below for a brief update:

 

Work Completed Last Week

  • Installed approximately 350 feet of 36-inch storm sewer up to Hampton Lane
  • Began rebuilding the GVSU Private Drive to the detention basin
  • Kent Power completed the installation of the 8-inch gas main up to Leonard Avenue

 

Anticipated Work This Week

  • Yesterday (Monday, April 22) and today, DTE is abandoning a section of gas main just north of the GVSU Private Drive that is in conflict with the new storm sewer
  • Brenner Excavating will install the storm sewer that was in conflict with the gas main over the next couple days (anticipated Wednesday and Thursday).  Then storm sewer main will continue to be installed from Hampton Lane to the north along the east side of Kinney.
  • Sand subbase and aggregate base will begin to be installed on the east side of Kinney between the GVSU Private Drive and Hampton Lane on Thursday or Friday
  • Kent Power will be filling the new main with gas within the next week or two after completing a tie-in to the old gas main at Leonard Avenue. New gas services will follow.

 

Kinney Avenue remains closed to through traffic.  Local traffic will continue to be flagged around both working operations for Kent Power and Brenner, but you may encounter minor delays.

The pavement on the east side of Kinney Avenue was milled two weeks ago.
Storm sewer has been installed within the GVSU Private Drive and the roadway is beginning to be rebuilt.
5-foot-diameter manholes are being installed along the 36-inch storm sewer.
April 8, 2024

The Kinney Avenue Project has made some progress this past week!   Below is brief update on what has been done and what is planned to come the remainder of this week:

Work Completed Last Week

  • Brenner Excavating has excavated the detention basin and has established rough grades.
  • The GVSU Drive has been closed.  The pavement has been removed and Brenner is installing the new storm sewer.
  • Kent Power continues to install new 8-inch gas main under the sidewalk on the west side Kinney Avenue.
  • Consumers Energy is on site working to relocate some of their facilities.

 

Anticipated Work This Week

  • Continue grading the detention basin
  • Install storm sewer improvements in the GVSU private drive and then head north on Kinney (east side) later in the week
  • Mill out portions of the pavement on Kinney, Brenner intends to keep as much of the existing as possible
  • Gas main will continue to be horizontally directionally drilled on Kinney Avenue on the west side

 

No change in mailbox locations is expected this week.

Traffic will be impacted once Brenner reaches Kinney with the storm sewer construction operation.  The crew will be working from north to south and will be moving approximately 150 feet further north each day.  Access  will be provided to local traffic only, but you may encounter more delays.
April 3, 2024

The Kinney Avenue Project is officially underway!  As of Monday, April 1, Kinney Avenue is closed to through traffic between Lake Michigan Drive and Leonard Street with a posted detour route via Wilson Avenue. Below is brief update on what has been done and what is planned to come the remainder of this week:

 

Work Completed Last Week

  • Brenner Excavating mobilized on Thursday, March 28
  • Top soil was stripped from the detention basin at the south end of the project and excavation began to expand the basin
  • Kent Power has continued to install new 8-inch gas main under the sidewalk on the west side Kinney Avenue from Lake Michigan Drive north to approximately Thornwyk Drive.

 

Anticipated Work This Week

  • Continue expanding and grading the detention basin
  • Install storm sewer improvements at the detention basin including the outlet control structure and 36-inch storm sewer inlet
  • Mill out the asphalt pavement on the GVSU private drive heading toward the detention basin (scheduled for Wednesday, April 3)
  • Top soil and hard surface removals may begin along Kinney Avenue soon including milling and removing approximately an approximately 8 foot wide swath along the east side of Kinney Avenue
  • Gas main will continue to be horizontally directionally drilled on Kinney Avenue from approximately Thornwyk Drive to the north.

 

On Tuesday morning, all mailboxes for residents along the east side of Kinney Avenue were relocated to a bank of mailboxes near the intersection of Hampton Lane and Kinney Avenue.  USPS will continue to deliver mail to this location until the mailboxes are able to be relocated toward the end of the project.

Kent Power is making progress on their installation of the new gas main along the west side of Kinney Avenue.
Precise survey equipment is being used to ensure the detention basin is expanded to the appropriate size.
Brenner has begun stripping topsoil at the detention basin and expanding the basin to the east to handle the additional stormwater.
March 26, 2024

The start date for the Kinney Avenue Reconstruction Project has been rescheduled to Monday, April 1, 2024.  The road closure and detour route to Wilson Avenue will be set up Monday morning.  Crews will begin next week working at the detention basin near the south end of the project and stripping topsoil along Kinney Avenue.  Storm sewer installation along Kinney Avenue is anticipated to begin approximately 1 to 2 weeks after construction begins.

March 15, 2024

Due to the unseasonably warm weather this spring, the anticipated start date for Brenner Excavating to begin work on Kinney Avenue has been pushed up to Monday, March 25, 2024. Work will begin at the detention basin near the south end of the project. Within approximately 1 week, storm sewer will begin to be installed along the private drive to Kinney Avenue and continue north on the east side of Kinney Avenue. DTE will also continue to install gas main along the west side of Kinney Avenue.

If there are any questions or concerns as the project begins, please reach out to me (Tyler DeNooyer) at 616-481-0693.

February 23, 2024

Tree clearing along Kinney Avenue and at the detention basin site has been completed as of yesterday (Thursday). Integrity Tree Services may come back prior to beginning road reconstruction (scheduled for April 29) to finish stump grinding.

As soon as next week, Kent Power is scheduled to begin replacing the existing gas main on Kinney Avenue with a new 8-inch diameter gas main along the west side of the roadway. New gas services will be installed to all affected properties. DTE will be reaching out to residents to schedule the transfer from their old gas service to the new one. Single lane closures along Kinney may be utilized by Kent Power, however two-way traffic will be maintained at all times. The gas main replacement is anticipated to be completed by the end of April.

Below are some photos of Kinney Avenue prior to construction. We can’t wait to see how the neighborhood improves this fall!
January 30, 2024

OPEN HOUSE

February 20, 2024

4:30 pm – 5:30 pm

Fire Station 2, Second Floor

4101 Lake Michigan Drive

Engineers and city staff will be there to discuss the project and answer questions. There will not be a formal presentation.

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