Intersection of University & 32nd to Reopen Soon

The City of Fargo said north-south traffic flow should be restored by the end of the week.

FARGO, N.D. (KVRR) – The intersection of 32nd Avenue and University Drive has been shut down since the end of May. Despite engineers’ best efforts, it’s just inevitable – any disruption of this nature is going to wreak havoc on commuters’ plans. However, the city says that relief will soon be on the way.

“We’re making sure that we’re keeping businesses informed of these different closures, how they’re going to be impacted,” said Jason Leonard, engineer for the city’s design and construction division.

This particular closure has been in effect since Wednesday, May 27 – and while twenty-plus days may seem like a long time to block off such an important intersection, engineers say that the infrastructure they’re putting in is vitally important.

“32nd Avenue is actually a very large drainage area. It’s a huge network that was under capacity, so we are actually increasing the capacity with a dual trunk main,” explained Leonard. “At the end of the day, we’re going to reduce flooding and stormwater impacts with this project.”

They also stress that they know how much the community relies on 32nd in general, and they wanted to make sure this long-term project was completed to a high standard of quality.

Luckily, for those particularly vexed by the intersection shutdown, they won’t have to be rerouted around it for too much longer.

“We’re just going to open north-south traffic,” said Leonard. “We’re planning for that to happen this Friday.”

The city also says that next week, they’ll be re-closing 15th Street to complete improvements in that area.