Liberty Memorial hill erosion repair project will constrict Main Street for months

Main Street between Crown Center and the Liberty Memorial will be constricted for as long as eight months while work crews address an erosion problem on the east side of the World War I memorial hill.

The $2.5 million project will require the removal of a 21-foot tall layer of shale.

Workers will then install a 558-foot long wall using a "soil nail wall" system to contain the hillside. The wall will range from 5 to 21 feet in height "and will have a natural contoured finish and color to complement the existing stone outcroppings along Main Street," according to the National world War I Museum and Memorial.

The work, to begin within a month, will require two lanes of Main Street to be closed for heavy equipment.

The job is being designed and executed by Gould Evans Associates and J.E. Dunn Construction.

The cost will be paid from the memorial's endowment and funds from the Parks and Recreation Department and general obligation bonds approved by voters.

In 2012, the Liberty Memorial attempted to address drainage and erosion problems on the hill, which was exposed when the cut for Main Street was made more than 90 years ago.

This story was originally published March 9, 2018 at 10:14 AM with the headline "Liberty Memorial hill erosion repair project will constrict Main Street for months."