Tempe says Mill Avenue streetscape is nearly complete; overnight closure planned for pole reinstall
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Summary
City and project team said Mill Avenue streetscape work between University and Rio Salado is near completion, with sidewalk, ADA and drainage upgrades finished; a brief overnight shutdown between Fourth and Fifth streets will occur for banner-pole reinstallation. Downtown Tempe will run an opt-in summer business campaign during upcoming work.
Josh, a project presenter for the Downtown Tempe streetscape project, said the renovation of Mill Avenue between University Drive and Rio Salado is largely finished, with “a lot of sidewalk and ADA improvements” and upgrades to water and irrigation systems. The project team also installed new bus shelters, historic markers and a revised tree palette in the downtown corridor.
Ben, a project presenter, described recent hardscape fixes that addressed pedestrian safety: the team added an extra catch basin, rebuilt corner foundations and applied patch-back treatment to intersection edges to reduce tripping hazards. “There was a little damage to [the banner pole] foundations during that huge microburst we had back in October,” he said, and crews have rebuilt the bases “to make sure that those will stand for another 20 years.”
Ben said the project’s phase 1 and phase 2 work is complete and phase 3 (work between 7th Street and Rio Salado) is nearing completion for hardscape elements. Planting was finished in January. He outlined the remaining schedule and traffic impacts: banner poles will be reinstalled on Friday, and “there’s is gonna be a shutdown between Fourth and Fifth from midnight to 5 in the morning,” after which the roadway will reopen. Gateway-signage work is expected to begin in mid-April 2026, and rotary demolition and replacement is planned to start in mid-May after Arizona State University classes end. All paving is expected to be done by the end of summer 2026, with striping continuing into late August.
Ali, a communications representative for Downtown Tempe, said the team will publish weekly updates in a merchant newsletter and add information to the city’s Tempe project web pages. She outlined a summer marketing campaign aimed at driving foot traffic during construction; participation by businesses is “opt in required.” Ali provided direct sign-up information (Ali@downtowntempe.com) and recommended merchants use the Tempe Trip website and the ParkMobile pay-by-phone service to help customers find parking.
Josh closed with contact information for the project team — including contractor Aiken Gardner’s site superintendent Brian Richards, plus Ben, Casey, Ali and Morgan — and said staff are reviewing the final paving schedule and will share it once approved. He also said there will not be a meeting in March and that the group plans to resume on April 14. The meeting ended with no questions from attendees.
Next steps: the project team will complete punch-list items during normal work hours, complete final paving and striping this summer, reinstall banner poles during the scheduled overnight work and publish schedule updates to the merchant newsletter and the city’s Tempe project page.
