Marty Gordon
[email protected]
Christiansburg’s Farmer’s Market moved from downtown and Hickok Street seven years ago, and the road where it once set up has been shut down for over two years.
A proposed drainage project was started but has since come to a complete halt. The road remains closed, and many residents and nearby business owners are left scratching their heads.
Historically, the 800 block of College Street and nearby channels have suffered severe, rapid flash flooding during heavy downpours, notably causing severe property damage and basement collapses during storm events.
To combat these serious problems, the town invested millions of dollars along College Avenue, adding a stormwater detention pond, expanding stormwater pipes and installing curb inlets.
As part of the much larger project, the town announced pipes in other areas of the town had to be both replaced and enlarged to handle the increase in flood waters.
Initially, this included replacing pipes near the intersection of Depot and North Franklin streets and even further up North Franklin Street. That part of the project took almost two years to complete.
The next phase was slated to include the deconstruction of Hickok Street and a part of Main Street where new pipes would push the flow of water away from Phase I.
The project had been announced as early as seven years ago. But town residents have been left to deal with detours, road closures and large pipes just sitting in place.
A town announcement said: “Hickok Street will be closed between College Avenue and Main Street beginning Feb. 3 (2025) and will remain closed until the project is complete.”
No one denies the project has been needed for a long time. In 2020, several homes were damaged from flood waters and a dog died along College Avenue. The time span is what is being questioned.
Work gradually started over two years ago but now seems to come to a complete halt. Work behind Macado’s restaurant has been finished, and contractors have fenced off an area adjacent to Hickok and the street itself.
No work has been seen there in almost eight months.
The town released this statement from Assistant Town Manager Scot Shippee.
“The town continues to work with the contractor and other parties to identify a path forward that appropriately addresses potential risks associated with the project while allowing the work to proceed,” he said.
“Our goal remains the timely completion of the Hickok Street improvements; however, because those discussions are ongoing, we are not in a position to provide an updated timeline at this time.”
An online post says final components and bids of the next phase that includes engineering additions were set to close on July 9.
In historical documents with the town, the “College Street Sewer Rehabilitation and Replacement aimed to reduce the number of sanitary sewer overflows.
According to the original explanation, the town said these overflows are a result of aging infrastructure that is subject to inflow (the direct entry of water into the sewer system from improper connections) and the leaking of groundwater into the sewer system during wet weather events.
The overall project will substantially increase the sewer line’s capacity and will also shift its path.
The new line will replace portions of a sewer system that was installed in the 1930s.
Early work included replacing segments from the Skate Park to Depot Street. The town points out Phase I of the project was completed in 2020.
Additional work would move pipes from under buildings near Hickok Street to new ones down Main Street. Detours had been marked for that part of the road for this past summer but signage has since been removed as work has not moved from Hickok to Main.
The current construction cost is listed at $4.4 million with $2.2 million funded through state of Virginia.
