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Concrete pours at Fern Valley interchange delayed until Jan. 8 Concrete pours at Fern Valley delayed until Jan. 8 By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Follow @@reporterdm MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Follow @@reporterdm Posted Jan. 1, 2016 @ 12:01 am By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Follow @@reporterdm Posted Jan. 1, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Winter hasn’t been kind to the massive Fern Valley interchange project in Phoenix after heavy rain in December twice shut down efforts to pour concrete at the intersection with Luman Road. “The weather was terrible,” said Gary Leaming, spokesman for the Oregon Department of Transportation. “We had a really tight window to do the pour.” Construction crews prepared to pour concrete for the intersection the weekends of Dec. 11 and 18, but heavy rain scuttled both attempts. The next window of opportunity is the weekend of Jan. 8. Leaming said the busy holiday weekends were avoided because of disruption to traffic. “The pour is critical to getting the interchange open after the first of the year,” Leaming said. Leaming said the intersection work has to be done on a very tight timeline. Work would begin Friday evening and be completed by 5 a.m. Monday morning. Even though the intersection work was delayed, the overall schedule for the opening of the interchange shouldn't be affected, Leaming said. The entire interchange is scheduled for completion in September 2016, and the main contractor is Hamilton Construction Co. of Springfield. Once the intersection is completed, construction crews can open the new southbound exit and northbound entrance sometime in spring, depending on weather. Temporary on- and off-ramps will be opened on the south side of the interchange. Pouring concrete for the intersection is important because the roadway needs to be raised several inches to match up with the concrete on the interchange. The intersection concrete also will transition into the new bridge being built over Bear Creek. Demolition of the old overpass on Interstate 5 should begin sometime after the new interchange is open. “The bridge should come down pretty quickly,” Leaming said. When the new interchange opens, drivers will have to get used to a "diverging diamond" pattern, the first of its kind in Oregon. Vehicles approach the overpass in the right lane, which allows a right turn onto the freeway. As motorists progress onto the overpass, the lanes cross to allow a left turn onto the freeway on-ramp, then cross back to put vehicles in the usual right-hand lanes as they continue on the road. Phoenix Mayor Jeff Bellah said his city would like to see the project completed, but the new interchange has helped spur the city to complete various road projects. “We jumped on it this summer,” he said. “We went ahead and repaved a couple of streets and chip sealed some other streets.” For a while truck drivers were getting confused at the Luman Road intersection, sometimes even trying to make a U-turn. But that issue was resolved, he said. Once completed, the interchange will pave the way for additional commercial development on the east side of the freeway, Bellah said. Despite the delay in getting the concrete poured for Luman Road, Bellah said, most people are understanding. “I'd just as soon do it right,” he said. “It won’t hurt if it takes a little longer.” Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476 or [email protected] . Follow him on Twitter at @reporterdm . By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Follow @@reporterdm MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Follow @@reporterdm Posted Jan. 1, 2016 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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