Welcome to the Downtown Revitalization Project page!

Overview

The Downtown Revitalization Project focuses on the nine-block area surrounding the historic Caldwell County Courthouse. Proposed upgrades include utility, drainage, street, hardscape, pedestrian access, and landscaping in the downtown area, along with traffic alternatives on North Main St., between SH-142/W. San Antonio St. and Walnut St.

Have questions about the project?

Submit your questions here.
If you have trouble accessing the Microsoft Form, contact Tatiana Salazar for assistance at tsalazar@lockhart-tx.org.

If you have a question regarding the project and needs to be immediately addressed, contact Sean Kelley at skelley@lockhart-tx.org.

Construction Phase

Progress Update: Crews have completed the installation of a storm sewer line on Prairie Lea and Commerce and continue working along Prairie Lea toward South Church. Sidewalks, curbs, and gutters were also installed at San Antonio and Church, as well as at the intersection of San Antonio and Commerce. Landscaping pavers have been placed on the northeast corner of San Antonio and Main. Paving and temporary striping have been completed on North Main between Walnut and San Antonio. 

Looking ahead to the next four weeks, crews plan to pour concrete on the northwest corners of Main at San Antonio and Commerce at San Antonio. Sidewalks will also be poured and installed along the north side of San Antonio to Main, north to Church, and at the northeast corner of Church and Prairie Lea. 

Additional paving will take place at the intersection of Walnut and Commerce, along Walnut from Commerce to U.S. 183, and on Commerce from Walnut to San Antonio. Utility crews will continue connecting remaining water services near Commerce and proceed with wastewater line installations in the alleys of Main and Commerce. 

Beginning the week of February 24, there will be temporary traffic closures downtown while construction takes place.

• Prairie Lea, from S. Main to S. Church St. will be closed.
• The north side of E. Prairie Lea, from S. Commerce to S. Main St., will be closed for approximately three days. The south side of E. Prairie Lea will remain open to traffic.         
• The intersection of Prairie Lea and Main St. will be closed for approximately three days.         
• Main St., from W. Walnut to W. San Antonio St., will be closed for approximately five days.         
• The intersection of W. Walnut and S. Main will be closed for approximately five days.         
• Parking on the corner of E. San Antonio and N. Commerce will be closed.       
• The sidewalk on W. San Antonio, between N. Main and S. Church St, will be closed until March 14 as the contractor progresses eastward towards N. Main. There will still be access to businesses on San Antonio St.
• The alleyway east of S. Main will be closed until March 12. Deliveries can still be made through the alleyway that comes out to N. Commerce.
  
  

Road and sidewalk closures are subject to change and the schedule is weather permitting.

Detours scheduled for Feb. 10: 

***Feb. 15 UPDATE: Paving work will not be able to resume Saturday, February 15 due to weather conditions affecting the road. The intersection of San Antonio and Church St. will remain closed through this weekend.

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Motorists traveling north are encouraged to detour on Blanco, through Church St, and go through N. Commerce to get to SH 142 again.

Motorists traveling south should go down Walnut St and turn on Blanco St to get to SH 142 again.

We ask you please pay attention to detour signs and exercise caution as you are driving through this area. Businesses surrounding the closed intersection (San Antonio and Church) will still be open.

Progress Update - Jan. 24: DeNucci has a total of five crews working around different areas of downtown to make quick progress. As of this week, crews have installed a storm sewer line on S. Commerce, near Prairie Lea as well as a wastewater line on Commerce and Main St. Sidewalk was poured along Main and Commerce St. More than 2,000 square yards of asphalt on Church St, and ADA paver and sidewalk strips were also installed.

Over the next four weeks, crews plan to pour curb and sidewalk on the southwest corner of Main and Walnut, W. Main (between Walnut and San Antonio St.), the northeast corner of San Antonio and Church St, and the northeast corner of San Antonio. Access to businesses along N Main St. and the jewelry store at the corner of Main and San Antonio will remain open.

A crew will continue to install water line on San Antonio St. near Main St. heading east toward Commerce St. Crews will also continue the storm drain installation at the intersection of Commerce and Prairie Lea.

Traffic impacts:       

• Parking on San Antonio St, from 183 to Church St., will be closed intermittently.         
• S. Main St. will permanently be a northbound one-way street.
• Parking closures on the west side of N. Main St. will occur as crews work.
• W. Walnut, between Main and Church St, will be closed.        
• N. Commerce will permanently be a southbound one-way street.
• Parking on the east side of N. Commerce, from Walnut to San Antonio St., will close intermittently.
• The intersection of S. Commerce and Prairie Lea will be closed all day while crews work.         
• The intersection of Church St. and W. Market will be closed while crews work, weather permitting. This intersection is expected to reopen within one day.

Progress Update - Jan. 10: Construction crews have reached their first milestone – work on the Downtown Revitalization Project is now 25% complete. Crews are now moving on to phase two of the project. DeNucci Constructors has also increased the number of crews from three to five (two utility crews, two concrete crews and one road crew.) The additional crews will be here over the next few weeks and will advance the overall projected timeline for project by as much as a few weeks.  

Over the past few weeks, constructors have installed storm sewer lines on the northside of San Antonio St. They have also poured more than 30 square yards of sidewalk along N Main St, as well as acid etch concrete sidewalks on part of N Commerce St. and part of N Main St.

Looking ahead to the next four weeks, crews will pour concrete for sidewalks and curbs along the east and west sides of N Main St, between Walnut and San Antonio St, as well as the southeast corner of Commerce/Walnut.

Crews are working with City staff to draw up a traffic control plan before installing a water line on San Antonio St, which will be the longest water line involved in this project.

Progress Update - Dec. 10:  Crews have installed ADA pavers and regular pavers along Main, Walnut, and Church Streets. Storm drain lines were also installed along N. Commerce, between E. San Antonio and E. Walnut. Crews have installed a new sidewalk, curbs, and gutters on the northwest corner of Walnut and Main, and the east side of Main St, as well as three trench drains. Concrete has been poured for sidewalks along Church St, between W. San Antonio and W. Walnut.

Looking ahead, crews will finish installing storm drain lines on N. Commerce and finish installing water and wastewater lines in the alley behind Loop and Lil’s. Crews will also continue installing curbs and sidewalks along the east side of Main St. from Walnut to San Antonio, as well as the installation of ADA pavers and regular pavers on completed corners. Contractors are anticipated to begin minor temporary street improvements at the intersection of Walnut and Church St to integrate the sidewalk with the street elevation. Crews will pause construction between December 20 and January 3, making businesses more accessible for pedestrian and vehicle traffic during the holidays.

Progress Update - Dec. 2: Construction crews have begun installing a storm drainage line on N. Commerce St, between E. San Antonio and E. Walnut St. This work is expected to last about three weeks. Crews will make sure there are signs at N. Commerce to indicate that businesses are still open.

Crews have also begun installing a wastewater line in the alley between N. Main St. and Church. The wastewater line will be installed on the north side of the alley. The alley will be closed to through-traffic, but delivery drivers will be allowed through with proper identification. The work in this alley way is expected to last about two weeks.

During the first week of December, construction will begin on the east side of N. Main St, between San Antonio and Walnut St. This work will include the demolition of the street, corners, and sidewalks. N. Main will be open to one-way traffic. Parking spots will be closed on the east side of N. Main. This portion of work is expected to last about three weeks.

Construction work until Friday, December 20. Work will resume on Thursday, January 3, 2025.

Progress Update - Nov. 13: Construction crews have removed more than 1,400 square feet of sidewalk on the northeast corner of Walnut and Main St and poured in concrete for a curb and gutter at the same intersection. Crews have also installed inlets and storm sewer lines at Walnut and Main, which will provide flood relief for nearby businesses in the future.

Looking ahead at the next two weeks, crews will finish installing storm sewer lines and inlets on Main St. After this part is complete, Main St. will reopen, and crews will begin installing storm sewer lines on W. San Antonio and Main St. This construction is being coordinated with TxDOT to finalize traffic control plans.

Crews will also begin pouring concrete on the northwest corner of Commerce and Walnut, as well as the northwest corner of Walnut and Main. In an effort to minimize traffic disruptions, the two intersections will not be closed simultaneously. As crews work on one intersection, they will close that one and leave the other intersection open and vice versa.  The replacement of wastewater mains and services will begin in the alley of N. Main between Walnut and N. Church St. Crews will work and communicate with businesses to minimize service disruption with businesses.

As crews make progress on the project, they will soon move equipment out of the area and free up parking spaces for nearby businesses on Walnut St.

Progress Update - Nov. 1: Construction crews have removed the northeast corner of Church and Walnut Street in preparation of a new sidewalk. Crews have also completed the installation of storm sewer lines with inlets along Walnut St. between Commerce and Main. Finally, crews have begun installing storm sewer lines on Main Street between Walnut and Prairie Lea.

Progress Update - Oct. 18: Construction crews have made progress downtown over the past two weeks. Sections of the project are still on time, while some are ahead of schedule. Looking ahead, crews are making the necessary adjustments to coordinate with the Texas Monthly Barbecue Festival during the first week of November. Crews already have the event built into their construction schedule and are aware of specific streets that must remain open to the public.

Work on the new bump-outs continues. Visually, they may look complete, but there are still a few things crews need to work on before the bump-outs are finished. First, it’s important to note that the bump-outs are being installed along the perimeter of the project and not all bump-outs will be installed at the same time. Crews also need to resurface the pavement in order to meet the profile of the curb, which ultimately alleviates the lip between the sidewalk and the street.

Progress Update - Oct. 4: Construction crews are installing curb extensions, also known as “bulb-outs”, along Church and Market Streets. Bulb-outs have been proven to improve pedestrian safety because they improve the visibility of pedestrians and reduce the distance pedestrians need to cross the street. Bulb-outs also narrow the roadway at key points, which tends to cause drivers to slow down.  The pictures below show the progress of the bulb-out installation.

Crews have also installed storm drain lines along parts of E. Pecan and N. Commerce. They will continue this work for the next two weeks, as well as form and install bulb-outs along the southeast corner of Church and W. San Antonio St. Patching on storm drain utility cuts along Pecan Street with asphalt has begun. Pecan is anticipated to open on Tuesday, October 8. Downtown businesses have been informed and are aware of the timeline on this work.

Progress Update - Sept. 20: Crews have installed erosion controls, a storm drain line, and backfilled trenches in the downtown area on Pecan St. the past two weeks. Public Works and TRC met with the Downtown Business Association this week to inform business owners about the changes they can expect and connect with city staff who are part of the project.

The date of the Notice to Proceed is September 3. Work will begin in the areas north of W. San Antonio St, between 183 and S. Main St, and some areas of Church St.

Some of the key requirements from the constructor include:

All work shall be performed between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays, unless authorized by the City.

• The contractor will be required to have someone on call 24 hours a day.
• The contractor shall make every effort to minimize noises caused by its operations.
• The contractor will also take responsible measures to prevent unnecessary dust.
• Conventional and portable changeable message signs will be used to alert residents and drivers about traffic disruptions.

During this time, San Antonio St will retain two-way traffic during the construction, with the exception of short-term flagger operations. The contractor will maintain one lane of traffic in one direction, one 8-foot-wide parallel parking lane, and sidewalks on both sides of the street for pedestrian access during construction on each street, except on San Antonio St.

A preconstruction meeting for the Downtown Revitalization Project is scheduled on August 22nd at 10:30 a.m. at City Hall, 308 W. San Antonio Street. Representatives from the contractor, engineering team, city staff and TxDOT will discuss. the plan to coordinate the groundbreaking of the project. During the week of August 12, DeNucci Constructors signed their contract.

After the City conducted two public open houses on the project, the City's consulting engineer and architects presented the downtown project's Final Conceptual Design report, along with their recommendations, in the April 19th and May 3rd City Council meetings. The report contained results from community input from both the downtown project's public open houses. On the May 3rd City Council meeting, Councilmembers approved the Final Conceptual Design Report, authorizing Staff to move forward with the design phase, favoring Option 1B below:

The design, which was drafted after additional community input and Council review, consists of two-way traffic around the Courthouse, one-way traffic on Commerce and Main Sts. in the blocks north and south of the Courthouse, all-way stops, additional parking spaces, preserves all median trees, curb bump-outs and pedestrian refuges. The plan does not include a plaza on the north side of W. San Antonio St./SH-142. On the June 21st meeting, City Council approved the Professional Service Agreement and Engineering Scope of Work Proposal with TRC Engineers, Inc. to proceed with the Downtown Revitalization Project's design phase. This segment of the project runs from June 2022- July 2023.

In the September 19, 2023 Council meeting, Councilmembers accepted the 100% Design Phase Report of the Downtown Revitalization Project as presented by the City Engineer, which included an updated cost estimate, project schedule, additional drainage improvements, irrigation, pedestrian amenities, parking, curb, and landscaping layouts, along with a look at materials to be used for paving and vegetation. Upon the completion of the Design Phase, the Downtown Revitalization Project entered the permitting phase. 

Downtown Revitalization Guide

The City, along with the Lockhart Downtown Business Association, have prepared a guide on the Downtown Revitalization Project to serve as a resource to downtown businesses and property owners who will be affected by the upcoming construction.

To view the guide, click here.

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