North Main Street Reconstruction in Newark: What Residents Need to Know

After nearly two decades of planning, Newark’s North Main Street reconstruction is moving toward construction. The project will bring major changes above and below the street, with utility work expected to begin in 2027 and roadway reconstruction planned for 2028.

If you drive, walk, bike or live along North Main Street in Newark, the next few years are going to bring some big changes.

Village officials and representatives from TYLin recently gave residents a closer look at plans for the long-awaited reconstruction of North Main Street. The approximately 1.2-mile project stretches from just north of the Erie Canal to Pearl Street and includes much more than putting down a fresh layer of pavement.

The plans presented include a largely full-depth reconstruction of the roadway, new sidewalks and curbing, ADA-accessible curb ramps, water and sewer improvements, stormwater work, changes to some on-street parking, replacement trees and landscaping, lighting improvements, bicycle accommodations, improvements to the pedestrian crossing near Lincoln School and replacement of the traffic signal at the southern end of the project.

North Main Street Project: At a Glance

Project area: North Main Street from just north of the Erie Canal to Pearl Street
Length: Approximately 1.2 miles
Current design stage: Approximately 60% at the time of the public meeting
Estimated project cost: More than $18 million
Utility work: Expected to begin in 2027
Road reconstruction: Planned for 2028
Current anticipated completion: October 2028
Major work: Road reconstruction, sidewalks, curbing, ADA improvements, water and sewer infrastructure, stormwater, lighting, pedestrian improvements, trees and streetscape work
Still being refined: Lighting, some parking areas, streetscape details and other elements as the project moves toward 90% design

Those dates may make the project sound fairly new. It isn't.

A Project Nearly 20 Years in the Making

The story of North Main Street actually begins around 2007, when the Village started traffic and parking studies that eventually led to preliminary plans for reconstructing both North and South Main Street.

Then Hurricane Sandy hit in 2012.

Mayor Jonathan Taylor explained during the meeting that federal money that had not yet been committed to active projects was redirected toward recovery and rebuilding efforts following the storm. Newark lost the funding it had anticipated for its Main Street work, leaving the Village without any certainty that the larger reconstruction would happen.

Instead of abandoning the plans, the Village continued spending money on engineering and design work to keep the project close to “shovel-ready.” The thinking was that if another funding opportunity appeared, Newark needed to be ready to take advantage of it.

Eventually, funding was secured for South Main Street, which underwent its major reconstruction in 2018 and 2019.

North Main Street kept waiting.

Village officials continued pursuing funding in the years that followed, eventually securing approximately $4.3 million through the Genesee Transportation Council. That funding helped move North Main into final design.

There was just one significant problem.

The cost of rebuilding a street has changed dramatically since Newark reconstructed South Main.

An $18 Million-Plus Project

South Main Street cost approximately $9.5 million to reconstruct.

The current estimate for North Main Street has climbed above $18 million.

The difference is striking considering the projects are not dramatically different in length. South Main is just under a mile, while the North Main project is approximately 1.2 miles.

That also means the $4.3 million already secured covers only part of the work.

The Village continues to pursue additional grants for portions of the project, including sidewalks, streetscape improvements and water and sewer infrastructure. Additional federal funding requested through Congresswoman Claudia Tenney's office was originally announced at $2.5 million. Taylor said during the meeting that the amount had been reduced to $1 million as it moved through the federal budget process, with the final amount still dependent on that process.

Meanwhile, the Village Board has authorized bonding for portions of the road, water and sewer work to make sure the project can continue moving forward. How much Newark ultimately needs to borrow will depend on additional grants and, eventually, what happens when the project goes out to bid.

It is also worth understanding something that often gets lost when communities announce large grant awards: that money usually comes with strings attached.

A grant awarded for sidewalks cannot simply be redirected to pave another street. Money awarded for a water project cannot automatically be moved to something else the Village would like to accomplish. The funding has to be used for the purposes for which it was awarded.

That means building a project like North Main Street becomes something of a giant puzzle: finding different funding sources and fitting them together until enough pieces are in place to actually build it.

They Aren't Just Repaving the Street

Anyone picturing a paving crew coming through and putting a new surface over North Main should think much bigger.

For most of the corridor, engineers are proposing full-depth reconstruction. The existing roadway will essentially be removed and rebuilt from the stone subbase up.

Sidewalks are also a significant part of the project.

Anyone who has spent much time walking North Main knows conditions can change considerably from block to block. Engineers noted that some sidewalks are deteriorated, uneven, affected by tree roots or vegetation, and in some locations seem to simply disappear.

The project calls for new sidewalks and curb ramps designed to meet current accessibility standards.

New curbing and driveway aprons are planned as well. Some trees will have to be removed where construction affects their root systems, but replacement trees and additional green space are included in portions of the design.

The project is also being developed using Complete Streets principles, meaning engineers are looking beyond vehicles and considering how pedestrians and bicycles use the corridor.

Rather than creating separate bicycle lanes, much of North Main is expected to have wider shared travel lanes designed to accommodate both vehicles and bicycles.

Before the New Road Comes the Work Underneath It

One of the smartest parts of the project may be something most people will never see once construction is finished.

The underground infrastructure is being addressed first.

Current plans call for water, sewer and potentially some stormwater work during 2027. Crews would then return for the major roadway reconstruction in 2028.

There is a very practical reason for doing things in that order.

If Newark is going to spend millions rebuilding North Main Street, nobody wants to see someone cutting into that brand-new pavement two years later because an underground line needs to be replaced.

Water and sewer services are expected to be replaced to the public right-of-way line as part of the project. The work will also provide an opportunity to address known and unidentified water service materials. Taylor said there are approximately 19 known lead services within the corridor and another 81 services whose material has not yet been identified.

The Village is also attempting to coordinate with other utilities before the road is reconstructed.

The goal is pretty straightforward: if somebody needs to dig up North Main Street, now would be a very good time to figure that out.

Yes, Some Parking Could Change

One of the things residents may notice in the finished design is that North Main Street will not necessarily have exactly the same footprint it has today.

Some on-street parking is expected to remain while other areas are proposed for removal. Where pavement can be narrowed, engineers have identified opportunities to create additional green space between the roadway and sidewalks.

That became part of the discussion during the public meeting when a resident questioned the proposed removal of parking in an area that is regularly used by nearby businesses and others.

Rather than dismissing the concern, engineers said they would go back and review the area and could consider retaining the parking if it is being regularly used.

That exchange is important because the plans residents saw at the meeting are not final.

The project was approximately 60% designed. Engineers are now working toward the 90% design stage.

There is still room for some details to change.

Lighting May Be the Detail Worth Watching

Of all the questions raised during the meeting, lighting produced one of the longest discussions.

Decorative pedestrian-scale lighting similar to South Main Street is included in the project, but under the current design and budget it does not extend the entire length of North Main.

That raised an obvious concern: would Newark end up with a beautifully lit southern portion of North Main while the residential neighborhoods farther north continue relying primarily on lights attached to utility poles?

Taylor acknowledged the concern and described it as one of his biggest concerns with the project.

There is also a lesson being carried over from South Main.

When South Main was designed, inadequate lighting had been identified as a problem. The Village responded with extensive decorative lighting, perhaps a little too extensively. Taylor joked during the meeting that South Main can look like a “landing strip” because the lights are so closely spaced.

Nobody appears interested in recreating the landing strip.

Instead, engineers said North Main's decorative lights are currently being considered at spacing of roughly more than 100 feet, with the exact layout still being refined. The goal is to provide appropriate lighting without overdoing it and, if possible, stretch the available funding farther north.

Officials also discussed adding additional standard LED fixtures to existing utility poles in areas where decorative lights will not extend.

For residents living farther north on Main Street, this is one part of the design worth continuing to watch.

And No, the Power Lines Probably Aren't Going Underground

Someone asked the question many people are probably thinking.

If Newark is tearing apart North Main Street anyway, why not put the overhead electric lines underground?

It sounds logical until you hear the numbers.

Taylor pointed to the Village's experience exploring underground utilities near T. Spencer Knight Park. Newark wanted to bury approximately 500 feet of utility lines in connection with improvements planned for the park.

According to Taylor, NYSEG eventually provided an estimate of approximately $6.7 million and a timeline of 51 months.

For roughly 500 feet.

Now imagine applying that cost to approximately 1.2 miles of North Main Street while also reconnecting individual properties.

As nice as underground utilities might look, the economics quickly make the idea unrealistic within this project.

So, How Messy Is This Going to Be?

There is no way to completely sugarcoat this part.

A project this large is going to be disruptive.

Engineers said construction will be completed in sections, with lane shifts and potentially temporary detours depending on the work taking place. The intention is to limit closures to individual blocks or smaller sections rather than shutting down the entire North Main Street corridor.

And North Main won't be Newark's only construction project.

Taylor warned that 2027 could feel a little like 2018 and 2019, when several major projects were happening around the Village at the same time. Work is also anticipated around the East Avenue Bridge and T. Spencer Knight Park.

So yes, there are probably a lot of orange cones in Newark's future.

There is another way to look at that, though.

North Main's Turn Is Finally Coming

It is easy to look at a construction project once the excavators arrive and see only the inconvenience.

The harder part to see is everything that had to happen before the first shovel ever touched the ground.

Newark started studying the reconstruction of Main Street nearly 20 years ago. Funding disappeared. Plans were kept alive. Grants were pursued. South Main eventually got its turn. North Main kept waiting.

There are still questions that need answers. Lighting is not completely settled. Some parking decisions could change. Additional grants could change how much Newark ultimately needs to finance. Final design and construction bids will fill in details that simply aren't known yet.

That is also why the public meeting mattered.

Residents were able to look at the plans, ask questions about their particular blocks and properties, point out concerns engineers might not see from a drawing, and leave comments while the design is still being developed.

North Main Street isn't finished yet.

But after nearly two decades of studies, plans, grant applications and waiting, it is getting much closer to finally being its turn.