A pre-construction meeting will be held Thursday in the Dora Roberts Civic Center. Registration and viewing of exhibits will be at 6:30 p.m., while the meeting will start at 7 p.m.

“This meeting will give local business owners and other residents a heads-up on what's about to happen,” said Matt Evans, a transportation engineer for the Texas Department of Transportation, which will oversee the renovation project.

TxDOT is expected to begin repavement of Gregg between FM 700 and E. Fourth within the next two months. The project is expected to last 10 months.

“As you drive up and down Gregg, it's pretty clear that it's not up to the standards of what a U.S. highway should be,” Evans said. “It's starting to show its age. Some failures are starting to show up ... We really need to replace the pavement.”

Evans said work crews will pave Gregg Street with “hot mix” coating, except at intersections with 10th, 15th, 17th and 18th streets, where concrete will be used. In addition, some sidewalk work will be done — including installation of wheelchair ramps — and street illumination will be upgraded.

Evans said crews plan to keep three lanes (one lane in each direction, plus a turn lane) open at all times during the project, which is expected to be completed in early 2010.

Evans and TxDOT Area Engineer Roy Dill will be on hand Thursday evening to answer questions.

For more information on the meeting, call 263-4768.

Contact Staff Writer Steve Reagan at 263-7331 ext. 234 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it