If you’re traveling through downtown Cornelia get ready for a detour. The city’s main thoroughfare is closed to through traffic due to work being done on the city’s sewer system. North Main Street is closed between CVS Pharmacy at Wayside Street and the railroad tracks near the Old Cornelia Depot. You can still get to businesses along North Main, including the post office, but you’ll have to take a detour along Clarkesville Street or other side streets to get there.
It’s all part of Cornelia’s effort to improve it’s aging infrastructure. Public Works Director Keith Ethridge says parts of it are nearly 100 years old. Many of the pipes are made of clay and that means, over time, cracks can form. Cornelia suffered a series of sewer leaks from old pipes last summer. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division slapped the city with a $3000 fine and orders to get to work replacing the problem lines.
The Cornelia City Commission approved the project in April. Some business owners expressed their concern about the potential impact of road closings but the city assured them business access will be maintained.
Ethridge says the Department of Transportation is scheduled to pave North Main Street/State Route 105 later this summer. By doing the sewer upgrades now Cornelia won’t have to cut up the newly paved road and Etheridge says, “We’ll have nice pretty streeets when this is all done.”
Higgins Construction is doing the work at a cost of $356,078. Construction is scheduled to be completed by September 7th.
