TMP staff told the Norwalk Bike Walk Commission on Oct. 6 that the city is making a final seasonal push to complete an unusually large number of sidewalk projects and related street improvements this year.

Greg Pacielli of TMP summarized multiple active projects. He described a West Rocks Road contract that will add roughly two miles of sidewalks from the Merritt Parkway to Creeping Hemlock and said work began in early September. He listed other projects under construction or near completion — Adams Avenue, Ward Street, East Wall Street phase 1 (Hospital Hill), Flax Hill Road, Grubman Avenue and Beacon Street — and said the total length of sidewalks installed or under construction this year will be “almost 11 miles” when combined across departments.

On West Avenue, public‑works crews removed the existing brick‑paver crosswalks and TMP is preparing the corridor between Maple Street and Wall Street for milling and paving. Pacielli said the city will replace brick pavers with thermoplastic markings that mimic the look of pavers but are low maintenance and retroreflective, add missing curb ramps and install additional crosswalk legs where only partial crossings existed. He added that TMP coordinated with the transit district to incorporate new bus stops and will add bidirectional bike lanes as a short‑term retrofit while a reconnecting‑communities grant study looks at longer‑term corridor redesign.

Why it matters: The volume of sidewalk work and the West Avenue retrofit aim to improve pedestrian access near schools, transit stops and new housing, and to connect sidewalks to the Norwalk River Valley Trail where feasible. Commissioners praised the pace of work and noted improvements at West Rocks and the Berkeley Street area.

Next steps: TMP will continue construction while weather permits, update the project web pages with design and meeting materials, and schedule a quarterly commission meeting to review city projects in detail.