July 25, 2003

Contact: James Modig, Design and Construction Management, (785) 864-3431.

KU waterline project nears completion, west campus entrance to close briefly

LAWRENCE -- Waterline improvements on Jayhawk Boulevard at the University of Kansas are nearing completion, and contractors plan to have traffic back to normal by mid-August.

James Modig, director of design and construction management at KU, said only one block of the old waterline remained to be replaced before the fall semester begins Aug. 21. To accomplish this goal, contractors will close Jayhawk Boulevard in both directions at the west entrance to campus, near the Chi Omega fountain, beginning July 28.

Both lanes will be closed through Aug. 7. On Aug. 8 the entry to campus will reopen to eastbound traffic.

Westbound traffic will be subject to detours until Aug. 15, when construction is scheduled to be completed.

According to Modig, contractors installing the new waterline on Jayhawk Boulevard are making good progress. Since the project began in May, workers have completed the line replacement from 13th Street to Poplar Lane.

This summer's construction is phase two of the 2002 Waterline Rehabilitation Project, which will replace 4,000 feet of waterlines installed in the early 1900s that are a secondary source of water for the university.

The project has been divided into six stages, four of which involve Jayhawk Boulevard. The other two stages will include work on Sunflower Road and on 13th Street.

During the final stage of the waterline work on Jayhawk Boulevard, Facilities Operations also will upgrade the electrical distribution system at Poplar Lane as part of a performance contract to reduce the university's energy usage.

The work, which will extend from Jayhawk Boulevard to the west edge of Strong Hall in an area adjacent to Poplar Lane, will eliminate parking along Poplar Lane from July 28 through Aug. 7. One-way, one-lane traffic will remain open during the construction. Parking restrictions will end at the entrance to the covered parking area behind Strong Hall.

KU hired CMS Viron Energy Services Co. of Overland Park to audit the Lawrence and Overland Park campuses for energy usage in January 2002.

Auditors evaluated the design of new facilities and renovation projects to ensure that energy efficiency was an integral part of the design. KU's goal is to reduce its annual energy usage from about $1.40 per gross square foot to $1 per gross square foot.