Construction of an interchange along U.S. Highway 1 at the Fifth Street Bridge exit should be complete by Nov. 1, officials said.
Jeff Terry, the construction engineer with the South Carolina Department of Transportation, said all major projects are finished.
"We still have some paving to complete and traffic and sign installations," Terry said.
The $2,285,000 project began March 30 and allows for motorists to enter the highway toward Georgia or South Carolina from each lane. Previously, residents of the RiverNorth community were only able to head toward North Augusta, or else cross the Fifth Street Bridge to get to Augusta.
Temporary lane closures are a possibility in the next weeks for paving operations. Terry urges motorists to continue to use the detour until the road is officially open.
Completion of the interchange makes it easier to continue toward development of the master plan in the future, said Skip Grkovic, the director of economic and community development for North Augusta.
The city recently purchased about 4.2 acres between the Fifth Street Bridge and Gordon Highway bridge in the Hamburg area for $910,000 that might lead to development along the river, Grkovic said.
"The property was for sale and the city looked at it and said there's an opportunity for the city to control this access into the city," he said.
The master plan proposed to turn the old Hamburg site into a "recreationally-themed waterfront community of high-density mixed uses, including housing, restaurants, retail, boat dock and fishing venue in the brick pond."
Grkovic said no commitment has been made toward the master plan but the new intersection will make it easier to move forward with development in that area in the future.
Reach Crystal Garcia at crystal.garcia@northaugustatoday.com.
