Work on Hwy. 288 and Blackhawk Boulevard are moving forward, as is work on Friendswood's street maintenance projects. Here are updates on these three projects, as well as McHard Road and the Hwy. 35 beautification projects.
Ongoing Projects
1. Hwy. 288 frontage road construction Hwy. 288 will not begin work on the northbound frontage road in August, as originally planned, as the project will now be a separate bid from Hwy. 288. The project, which will consist of building a northbound frontage road on Hwy. 288 and a U-turn lane at CR 59, will be overseen by the city of Pearland. Timeline: TBD Cost: $8.44 million Funding sources: city of Pearland, Pearland Economic Development Corp., Brazoria County 2. Hwy. 35 beautification and corridor enhancements Construction on the Hwy. 35 beautification and corridor enhancements is underway and set to be completed in September. The project includes adding benches, ramps and brick pavers at pedestrian areas, Pearland monuments at Broadway Street, plantings with the medians and right of ways, and two Pearland monuments at Beltway 8 and Hwy. 35, which were installed in May. Timeline: August 2018-September 2019 Cost: $6 million Funding source: PEDC 3. Blackhawk Boulevard reconstruction Blackhawk Boulevard will be roughly 50% complete this July. Originally planned to be finished with Phase 2 in July, the project has been pushed back due to weather. The city is working on a revised calendar for the project, as it is moving at a different timeline than when it was originally planned. The project includes improvements from Friendswood Link Road to Edenvale Street, including the replacement of 6,000 feet of concrete pavement; replacement of curb and gutter; and evaluation of existing utilities. Timeline: June 2018-TBD Cost: $4.58 million Funding source: 2013 Friendswood bond
Future projects
4. McHard Road extension The timeline to bid McHard Road has been pushed back, as the city has not finalized property acquisitions. The city had to buy out 77 properties in order to extend the road and was originally scheduled to finish buyouts in May. The project will likely be bid out in September or October. The project will extend McHard Road from Mykawa Road to Cullen Boulevard, allowing McHard to be an east-to-west thoroughfare in the city. The new road will consist of a four-lane, concrete curb and gutter, divided roadway with raised medians and underground drainage. Timeline: January 2020-January 2022 Cost: $33.63 million Funding sources: city of Pearland, Houston-Galveston Area Council’s Transportation Improvement Program
