Minneapolis - Phillips South - Project Updates

A crew from Michels Corporation, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, is connecting the natural gas service lines to the new mains in the northern half of the project’s routes. Since there are a few houses on each block that isn’t finished with service line work, the crews are or will be working along the following streets:

Columbus Avenue S. between 27th and 28th Streets E.; Oakland Avenue S. north and south of 26th Street E.; 5th Avenue S. south of 27th Street E.; 27th Street E. between Oakland and Portland Avenues S.; and 3rd Avenue S. between Lake Street E. and 29th Street E.

For one day on Wednesday, September 1, the crews will close 27th Street E. to through traffic between Oakland and Portland Avenues S. to perform the service line work.

Crews from Michels Corporation, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, replaced the natural gas mains on the north side of the project from south of 25th Street E. to 28th Street E.

Starting today on Tuesday, August 17, the crews are replacing natural gas main on Clinton Avenue S. and 5th Avenue S. between Lake Street E. to 29th Street E. There is no parking on the east and west sides of Clinton and 5th Avenues S. with one sidewalk closure. The no parking signs will be lifted on Friday, August 20.

Starting on Thursday, August 19, the crews will begin replacing the mains on Oakland and Columbus Avenues S. crossing Lake Street E. Two-way traffic will be maintained on Lake Street E. As they cross, the crews will shift their traffic barriers from the south to the north side of Lake Street E. Flaggers may be on Oakland and Columbus Avenues S. to help direct traffic. Local access will be maintained. This traffic plan will end on Thursday, August 26.

Crews from Michels Corporation, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, replaced the natural gas main across Chicago Avenue S. on 28th Street E. By the end of this week, they plan to have replaced the main on 28th Street E. from Oakland to Chicago Avenues S. By Friday, July 30 or earlier, they will remove the no parking signs from Columbus Avenue S. north of 28th Street E.

In the middle of the week of August 2, they will begin replacing the main on 26th Street E. from Columbus to 5th Avenues S. No parking signs will be posted by August 2 in this area and on the east and west sides of Oakland Avenue S. from 28th to 26th Streets E. The crews anticipate keeping the no parking signs until August 13 or removing them sooner than August 13.

Crews from Michels Corporation, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, are replacing the natural gas main north on Columbus Avenue S. They have no parking signs and sidewalk closures on 27th Street E. from Columbus to Chicago Avenues S.

On Monday, July 19, the crews will begin replacing the main on the north side of 28th Street E. from Columbus Avenue S. and will cross to the east side of Chicago Avenue S. No parking signs will be posted approximately 200 feet north of 28th Street E. A lane shift and sidewalk closure will alternate from the west side then to the east side as the crews work across Chicago Avenue S. The approximate duration of the main replacement is the week of July 19.

Crews from Michels Corporation, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, are replacing the natural gas main on the north side of 28th Street W. from Oakland to Chicago Avenues S. During this time, parking on both sides is restricted and the north sidewalk is closed.

On Tuesday, July 13, the crews will replace the main on Columbus Avenue S. from 28th to 26th Streets E. No parking signs will be posted in this area, and the east sidewalk will be closed as needed. The approximate duration of no parking is 1.5 weeks. Parking will be open on the weekends.

This week, the crews are replacing the natural gas main across Portland Avenue on the north side of 28th Street E. The north sidewalk on 28th Street E. and the northwest sidewalk on Portland Avenue in this area are closed. The bike lane is temporarily merged with the vehicular lanes. When the crews are done replacing the main on this side, they will replace the other main on the opposite side.

This week, the crews are crossing Oakland Avenue on the north side of 28th Street E. The north side of 28th Street E. is closed. On the south side of 27th Street E., the road is closed to through traffic. After the mains are replaced on these streets, the crews will begin work on Park Avenue S. with a similar traffic plan to that on Portland Avenue.

Crews from Michels Corporation, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, have begun replacing the project’s natural gas mains. They are starting on 28th Street E., working from 5th Avenue S. toward Chicago Avenue S. No parking signs are placed on the north side of 28th Street E. from 5th Avenue S. to Park Avenue S.

From late June to within fall 2021, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractors will work in Minneapolis. Michels Corporation will replace natural gas mains, connect the natural gas service lines to the new mains, and move any inside residential meters outside. Q3 Contracting will restore the areas affected by Michels Corporation’s work outside the limit of the City of Minneapolis’s Phillips South, Powderhorn & 35th St. E. Resurfacing. During this time, lane or parking closures may occur along the following streets.

26th Street E. between 5th Avenue S. and Chicago Avenue S.; 27th Street E. between 5th Avenue S. and Chicago Avenue S.; 28th Street E. between 5th Avenue S. and Chicago Avenue S.; Columbus Avenue S. at 25th Street E. and from 26th Street E. to Lake Street E.; Oakland Avenue S. from just north of 26th Street E. to 28th Street E. and on the 2900 block; 5th Avenue S. between 27th Street E. and Lake Street E.; and the 2900 blocks of Clinton Avenue S. and 3rd Avenue S.

The construction crews and personnel will continue to use the Covid-19 Customer Permission Flyer, which requests customer permission prior to entering homes. Personnel, contractors and CenterPoint Energy employees will continue to practice CDC guidelines regarding social distancing, sanitary practices and wearing face masks when entering customer homes.

The customer will receive a CenterPoint Energy postcard in the mail typically within one or two weeks prior to the day when the Michels Corporation crews will perform the work. The crews will have CenterPoint Energy-authorized photo IDs stating that they are employees of Michels Corporation.

After the customer receives the postcard, the foreman will arrive at the customer’s house to schedule an appointment that typically meets with the customer’s schedule. If the customer isn’t home when they arrives, he will leave a door tag with his contact information to schedule an appointment with him.

Customers are advised to set aside a two- to four-hour time frame for the inside-to-outside gas meter move. They are also advised to mark their privately-installed utilities such as dog fences or sprinklers. Marking can be accomplished with tools such as spray paint or utility flags. The foreman will access the natural gas meter inside the house, move the meter outside, and relight the natural gas appliance pilot lights after the new meter has been relocated.

Customers with outside meters will be notified prior to the replacement or connection of the service lines to the new mains. Areas affected by our work will be restored to their original condition.

Crews from Q3 Contracting, CenterPoint Energy’s authorized contractor, will follow to restore the areas affected by Michels Corporation’s work, including hard and soft surfaces. On the soft surfaces such as boulevards and lawns, various erosion control measures keep the restored area moist, hold seed in the soil, and enhance seed germination. If an erosion blanket is needed it is secured in place with staples. The mesh is a wood fiber that will completely degrade. Prior to mowing the restored area, remove any loose staples that secured the blanket.