The Hammond Board of Public Works and Safety approved a temporary traffic restriction on Columbia Avenue from 160 Seventh Street to Summer Street for the 2024-2 CCMG project, authorizing one lane in each direction beginning on or after May 27 and continuing approximately through Aug. 1.

Staff told the board the contractor initially could have placed traffic control on May 19 but decided to delay until May 27 to avoid minimal work over a holiday weekend. “They said they could have put it up on the nineteenth, but you would see very little work being done. And we didn't want to do a little bit of work and then go through the holiday weekend and have this traffic control up,” a staff member said.

The plan is to start work in the outside lanes — the right-hand lane in each direction — to address curb work and to maintain the overall Aug. 1 completion date, staff said. Staff also confirmed manhole casting adjustments and any necessary manhole-top reconstruction would be handled during the project.

The board recorded the routine recommendation and concurrence that authorized the lane restriction with the adjusted start date. No specific traffic-control plans, detour maps, or nighttime work schedules were provided in the public discussion.