This article has been updated with revised financial information made available after the May 17, 2019 print edition went to press.

A long-awaited project that will place sidewalks along some state roads in central Newtown is slated to start work sometime in June, according to Rob Sibley, town deputy planning director.

The project is planned with an overall $1,175,000 budget, including federal, state, and local funds. The town share of the project will be 20 percent of the overall amount of money spent.

Grasso Industries Inc was awarded the construction component of the project with a bid of $693,755. That price covers construction only, not design or related project costs.

The sidewalk project had been slated to start construction in mid-2017, but it encountered multiple delays.

Approximately 5,900 linear feet of sidewalks will be built along South Main Street, Mile Hill Road, Wasserman Way, and Trades Lane. The five-foot-wide sidewalks will be constructed of brushed concrete, which is considered a much more durable material than asphalt.

Mr Sibley said construction will start sometime in June at the intersection of Wasserman Way and Trades Lane, near Reed Intermediate School. Construction will proceed toward the sidewalk’s terminus at the intersection of South Main Street and Glover Avenue.

“[Grasso Industries is] hoping to use as many crews as possible to accomplish the project in a timely manner,” Mr Sibley said. The project’s completion is projected for early December.

Sidewalks are planned for the eastern side of South Main Street between its intersections with Glover Avenue and Mile Hill Road, the northern side of Mile Hill Road between its intersections with South Main Street and Wasserman Way, the northern side of Wasserman Way between its intersections with Mile Hill Road and Trades Lane, and the western side of Trades Lane between its intersections with Wasserman Way and the main driveway at Reed Intermediate School.

The sidewalk construction design will meet the access requirements of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The project will not include any roadway improvement work.

The project will not include the construction of any retaining walls, as the sidewalks will follow the rise and fall of the terrain. The new construction will occur within the state’s rights-of-way for the several roads. The sidewalks will generally be positioned at least five feet away from the curbline along the roadways.

The new sidewalks will improve pedestrian access between the center of town and the Fairfield Hills campus. The sidewalk project dovetails with the completed Fairfield Hills Streetscape Project. The streetscape project improved access to the campus via its main entrance and installed some street lighting.

Through sidewalk construction, the town seeks to encourage safe travel by foot.

Mr Sibley said he looks forward to the sidewalk project becoming part of the town’s transportation system.

“Connecting our Main Street sidewalks system with Reed School and the greater Fairfield Hills campus will be a wonderful legacy,” he said.

Town, state, engineering, and construction officials had a pre-construction meeting on the sidewalk project on May 9.