Following Riberia Street rehabilitation

Work has begun; marking the end of five years of planning and the beginning of two years of rehabilitation to Lincolnville’s Riberia Street — and Historic City News will be following the progress of the project.

Among yesterday’s attendees was Lincolnville’s “Mayor” Linda James, who is eager to see repairs completed, but acknowledges that she’ll have to be patient a bit longer.

St. Augustine Mayor Joseph L. Boles, Jr., made the following presentation:

Good morning and thank you for joining us here as we celebrate the start of a project that we have all wanted for a long time…the rehabilitation of Riberia Street.

Riberia south of King is a mile long stretch that runs along the western river bank of the San Sebastian and through neighborhoods rich in tradition and history as is the marine industry that still maintains a working waterfront. Riberia Street is vital to our community, and has served…still serves…a great many people and businesses every day. It is certain that a great many people, their businesses, their neighborhoods will be well served by this project.

This work we start here today is the good work a city does for itself, and by “city” I mean the people who live here and work here every day, year after year….in short the people who call St. Augustine home. This project is one we are doing for ourselves.

I know many of you wish today’s ceremony was a ribbon cutting and not a groundbreaking for this project…that we were here celebrating the completion of the project…but first we have to do the work, and that will most certainly be inconvenient and at times noisy and often dirty. But then it will all be over and I promise you there will be a ribbon cutting and we will welcome a reinvigorated Riberia-south-of-King.

Phase One of the $8.2 million project, from King to Bridge Street, will cost an estimated $3.4 million and is scheduled to be completed in January 2012. The second phase, from Bridge Street to the end of Riberia, is estimated at $4.8 million and is scheduled to be completed in January 2013.

Details on the evolution of the project are on the city website.

Photo credits: © 2011 Historic City News staff photographer