Wickham Road To Reopen Between Eau Gallie Boulevard and Aurora Road Thursday Morning

By  //  March 23, 2016

will reopen in time for rush hour

stormwater-drain-brevard-580-1
Stormwater Project Manager, Carolina Alvarez, left, with the Brevard County Natural Resources Management Department, Watershed Program, on site inspecting the box culvert installation progress. (Brevard County image)

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Wickham Road, between Eau Gallie Boulevard and Aurora Road, will reopen in time for rush hour traffic Thursday morning, nine days ahead of schedule and just in time for the post-spring break return to classes.

Nearly flawless weather, combined with good planning and good luck, played a key role in getting the road, which runs through a busy business corridor, back open and well in advance of its initially targeted re-opening April 2.

The project was planned in advance of the rainy season, which traditionally runs June 1-Nov. 30. Homes and businesses in the area are prone for flooding in major storm events, such as Tropical Storm Faye in 2008.

The stretch of Wickham Road was closed Feb. 22 for installation of a 110-foot long, 8-foot-by 5-foot stormwater culvert that’s designed to help mitigate the frequency and duration of flooding events in the area.

John Denninghoff
John Denninghoff

“A reason we chose to do this project this time of the year is the weather and it paid off for us,” said Brevard County Public Works Director John Denninghoff.

On Tuesday, workers completed the pouring of concrete on the grant-funded $800,000 culvert project. Denninghoff said all that remains is some backfilling around the west headwall of the culvert, which is expected to be completed Wednesday afternoon, after the asphalt is poured for the roadway.

Wednesday night, the roadway will be striped, detour signs will be removed and, by early Thursday morning, barricades will be taken down, thus signaling the opening of the roadway to traffic.

Wickham Road Between Eau Gallie Boulevard and Aurora Road To Reopen Ahead of ScheduleRelated Story:
Wickham Road Between Eau Gallie Boulevard and Aurora Road To Reopen Ahead of Schedule

Work will continue in the drainage ditch, but should not pose impediments to daily traffic, Denninghoff said.

The county has posted daily updates on Facebook of the project’s progress, including aerials shot by a drone, since it began a month ago.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

stormwater-drain-brevard-580-2
Brevard County Public Works construction installing box culvert at Wickham Road and Eau Gallie Creek. (Brevard County image)