Jericho Turnpike Beautification Work Delayed in New Hyde Park

While the second phase of the Jericho Turnpike beautification project in New Hyde Park has been awarded, “we’re just in the final stages of finishing the paperwork,” mayor Robert Lofaro said during the regular board meeting on July 16 at the village hall, noting that the remainder of the corners from Millers Lane to Second and Third Avenue will be done in late July.

Commonly known as Operation: Mainstreet, the bids for the project were opened on June 6 and include new fixtures such as pavers, street furniture, street plantings, and irrigation to the plantings in the state-built medians.

There were two firms that placed bids on the project: Bohemia-based J. Anthony and New York Paving, located in Old Bethpage, which was responsible for the construction of the new medians along Jericho Turnpike. J. Anthony is the current low bidder at $1,469,374 while New York Paving submitted a bid of $1,527,043.10 for the project.

At a previous meeting, trustee Donald Barbieri stated that he hoped that the project would begin in early July. However, New York State construction crews from Tully Construction are currently operating in the village laying asphalt as part of the new overlays on Jericho Turnpike and are scheduled to be finished by the end of July. Crews are currently completing about 1,000 ft. per night of work.

The first phase of the project focused on beautifying the center medians with pavers and plantings while the second phase would install bulb-outs, landscaping and other architectural improvements. However, the state is continuing to review the bid and the project.

“We believe there’s a few small adjustments that still need to be made and then once that’s completed then we can formally award the contract,” Lofaro said, anticipating the project would take another few weeks.

“We’ve learned that working with the State of New York is probably the most challenging and daunting task that we can imagine,” Lofaro said of the ongoing construction.

Walk Street Tavern owner Jim Tubbs complained about the sidewalks in front of his building as construction crews are working in the area, asking if they would be repaired or completely redone.

“We will evaluate the curbing and others as we’re doing our project,” the mayor said. “Whether it be the state plows, the state contractor that just did the work, if there’s things that need to be corrected, we will let them know.”

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