Mayor Steve Barnett cuts the ribbon and officially reopens Yandes Street Thursday morning.
Waylon O’Donnell | Daily Journal
The City of Franklin officially opened Yandes Street following a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday morning.
Under construction since August 2, 2022, the historical Yandes and Madison Street preservation project was embarked upon to refurbish the last remaining brick street in Franklin, an initiative residents had been adamant about maintaining.
“In 2017, one week after I became mayor, I started getting emails from residents that lived on Yandes Street saying ‘I hope you are not one of these mayors who think that they are going to blacktop our street,” Mayor Steve Barnett said. “We started planning this in 2017 and here we are six years later. We are also celebrating our bicentennial birthday, so I think it is fitting.”
Yandes Street is a little more than a half-mile long. The project also included the restoration of the brickwork on a block of Madison Street, relocating the utility lines from the street to the sidewalk area as well as installing new sidewalks and street lighting.
GAI Consultants told Barnett in 2017 that they committed to finding a solution that would grant the community’s wish to retain the street’s history.
“I made a commitment to replace the street with brick,” Scott Hornsby, vice president and business sector leader of GAI Consultants said. “I wasn’t going to pave it.”
The reopened street is made with new bricks and the historic bricks were given away to residents after they were removed from the street during construction.
Barnett, who grew up on nearby Kentucky Street and whose wife was raised on Yandes Street, said the neighborhood and the bricks were special to him.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization funded $2.32 million of the $4.5 million project with federal dollars. The project was managed by the Indiana Department of Transportation, who worked with several contractors including Beaty Construction, and completed the project nearly a month ahead of schedule, Barnett said.
“We spread the funding around the city to cover the cost,” he said. “This is what makes Franklin what it is. This is genuine Franklin right here. When you get the neighborhood to come out and support projects like this, and lived through what they lived through, I can’t say enough.”
There were a few hiccups along the way, but no project like this is without a few problems, said City Engineer Mark Richards.
It was difficult to collect trash while the street was under construction, Barnett said. The project also received some backlash following the removal of the trees on the street. However, the trees were not expected to survive because their root systems had to be cut to relocate utility lines, said Barnett back in January.
Two trees will be planted in front of each house on Yandes, which will bring approximately 36 to 38 new trees to the street. Residents will have the opportunity to choose what trees they would like based on a list of trees approved by Franklin’s Tree Commission.
Craig Mormon, a retired pediatrician who lives on Adams Street close to Yandes, said that although it has been difficult to navigate during the construction period, he is thankful that the project was completed.
“I really got to know a lot of the workers pretty well,” Mormon said. “It’s been really great. It’s been a sacrifice a little bit, but we figured out different ways to get through town. We’ve always like the brick street. I know it was difficult and expensive, but it is really nice to maintain that history.”
The process was a long one, but it has paid off in the long run with brick street that residents can drive on for decades to come.
One word uttered by Barnett as he cut the ribbon summed up the feelings of many city residents: “finally.”
