South First Street is due for a face-lift this October.

The strip of First Street between Barb Boulevard and Taylor Street will be upgraded from gravel to asphalt shoulders and more piping will be laid for drainage improvements, City Engineer Joel Maurer said.

“The road needed some maintenance,” Maurer said. “We’re strengthening the shoulders so it will last another 25 years.”

Meetings held with the residents of the area in early 2004 indicated some complaints such as loss of parking and issues about left turn lanes because of the construction, but a compromise has been reached, Maurer said.

Construction is scheduled to begin Oct. 1 and continue until the first week of December, he said. It will break for winter and restart in mid-April.

The $1.25 million project will be carried out by Curran constructors, he said.

The money for the construction is coming equally from federal funding and from the city’s motor fuel tax.

During the times of construction, the road will be closed to all but local traffic, City Manager Mark Biernacki said.

Non-residential traffic will be directed to Fourth Street and Annie Glidden Road, Biernacki said.

“[The road] is in very bad shape – it’s falling apart,” he said.

First Street resident Kenneth Moeller agreed.

“The street is in poor shape,” Moeller said. “Anything that will improve First Street, we’re looking forward to.”

He added, “The asphalt will make it a little quieter going up and down the street.”

Another First Street resident,Tom Hughes, said he is looking forward to the drainage improvements the construction will bring.

During periods of heavy rain, water accumulates outside his driveway, Hughes said.

He said he attended one of the town meetings and was happy to hear the drainage problems were included in the construction agenda.

His concerns regarding getting in and out of his driveway, and the effect of the construction on traffic are a small price to pay, he said.