Major construction projects to impact campus traffic including West Thach Avenue

Facilities Management started, worked on and finished about 50 projects during the holiday break. Two major projects with continued impacts to traffic include the Northeast Campus Utilities Expansion and Auburn Research Park Infrastructure Expansion.

The Northeast Campus Utilities Expansion project will expand utilities from West Thach Avenue across College Street in preparation for construction of the Tony and Libba Rane Culinary Science Center, as well as future infrastructure expansion projects as needed.

Phase I of the project began on West Thach Avenue during the holiday break. Work included the installation of 2,200 linear feet of piping for hot and chilled water and electrical conduit. The work also included a 30,000 pound in-ground electrical vault. The vault will house future electrical controls.

The project has moved into Phase II which includes the continued installation of piping along West Thach. Future phases will continue to install utilities across South College Street and into the future Rane Culinary Science Center site.

Current vehicle impacts of this project include:

• West Thach Avenue transitioned to a one-way street on Jan. 6 with the closure of the eastbound lane. This lane will remain closed through mid-March as utility installation continues. During this time, vehicles can enter Ross Square via South College Street, but will need to exit using Engineering Drive to access Magnolia Avenue.

• The Mary Martin Hall parking lot is closed through mid-February. Accessible parking has been temporarily relocated to Ross Square.

Other lane closures and transitions will begin in mid-February. Information regarding these closures will be communicated by the end of January. The latest detailed closure maps can be found on the Facilities Management Temporary Road and Facilities Closures page.

“Utilizing multiple phases allows us to keep parking in Ross Square open,” said Wendy Peacock, Facilities Management's director of Construction Management. “This approach helps focus on our primary concern, which is to minimize vehicle and pedestrian impacts to campus.”

Completion of the utilities expansion project is scheduled for this summer.

A second major road project, which began prior to the holiday break, is located within the Auburn Research Park. The Auburn Research Park Infrastructure Expansion project is extending Camp Auburn Road and associated utilities from near Devall Drive to reach Shug Jordan Parkway.

“Left and right lanes will be added for the new Shug Jordan entrance allowing the Research Park to have an additional access point to serve ongoing and future growth,” said Ben Burmester, Facilities Management's university traffic and site engineer.

Currently, Auburn University contractors are working to grade the new road within the Research Park while Spire natural gas company lowers the gas line along Shug Jordan Parkway to allow for the upcoming widening of Shug Jordan for turn lanes.

Vehicle traffic traveling on Shug Jordan from South College Street toward Wire Road is advised to use caution. Be on the lookout for intermittent lane closures, and Spire employees working near the edge of the road.

For more information on all major projects taking place on campus, go to the Temporary Road and Facilities Closures page.