Church Street reopens as 140 West project advances

Church Street reopened to traffic last week after being closed for more than a year — much to the relief of some Chapel Hill residents.

A portion of the downtown street was closed between Franklin and Rosemary streets in March 2011 while construction of the mixed-use development 140 West moved forward.

One westbound lane of West Franklin Street was, and still is, closed for construction.

Developers broke ground on the $55 million development — located at the corner of West Franklin and Church streets — in January 2011.

The project will include 140 condominiums, 26,000 square feet of retail space and 337 parking spaces.

Robert Myers, a traffic operations engineer with Chapel Hill, said the street reopened on Friday — though it has remained open to pedestrians throughout all phases of construction.

And for the residents of the Northside neighborhood — where many UNC students live — the reopening couldn’t come soon enough.

The street’s reopening was delayed in March at the request of the developer, Ram Development Company.

Company officials said they were worried about pedestrian safety because of the construction, which required the use of cranes and heavy machinery.

Senior Kate Treacy, who lives off Church Street, said she was glad to see the road reopened to traffic.

“I just moved in, but it’s nice to not have to go around,” she said.

Angela Carson, who lives on Lindsay Street, off Church Street, said she was excited to see the road reopened last week.

“You don’t know how big of an access it is,” she said. “It’s a shortcut to Franklin.”

She said it was an inconvenience to drive around Rosemary Street to get to Franklin Street.

“I look forward to traffic going back to normal,” she said. “It’s hard to drive, let alone cross the street.”

Some pedestrians expressed concerns about the safety of the closed off portion of Church Street, citing the lack of lighting and the secluded nature of the closed section.

A temporary sidewalk — running along the north side of Franklin Street — was opened this summer, bringing pedestrian traffic back to that side of the street.

Construction is also moving forward for the development, according to its website.

Windows have been installed on the Franklin Street side, and the roof was put on in May.

Construction is expected to wrap up next year.

Contact the desk editor at city@dailytarheel.com.