Community comes together for ‘Broadway is Back’ celebration

(ABC 6 NEWS) – Construction on North Broadway Avenue has been going on for six months now. On Saturday, city leaders and members of Elcor Construction came together to highlight the work they’ve done so far.

The event was a celebration. It was called ‘Broadway is Back!’

Rochester Mayor Kim Norton and other city and state leaders had a ribbon-cutting ceremony to stress the importance of this project, especially what it means for the Lowertown neighborhood.

"This was a long time coming. We have had many discussions with the businesses we knew it would be disruptive but I think with everyone working together, we were able to mitigate that as best as possible. How do we build stronger, safer neighborhoods? We do that from the ground up," Mayor Norton said.

Mayor Norton says this project will feature a ‘Cycle Track’ for cyclists. It will have different lighting and brickwork for them to ride on and it will be separated from traffic. It will be 5,000 feet long.

The project will also feature one mile of new concrete sidewalk.

Penny Bracken, the owner of Kismet Consignment tells ABC 6 News that the construction was a long time coming. It did impact their business but their customers always knew where they were.

She says this project will bring more vibrancy to the downtown and she’s excited for what this project will bring.

The roadway will reopen to traffic from Silver Lake Bridge to Civic Center Drive starting on Monday.

Phase two of the project will resume in Spring 2022.