Second Street is on track to reopen to traffic Friday from Fourth Avenue to First Avenue, the Sterling city manager told the Sterling City Council.

The report Monday include updates several road and street projects.

“There still is some landscaping work that needs to be done,” said Scott Shumard, Sterling‘s city manager.

A delay in getting ComEd to relocate utility poles has been a major sticking point in the Second Street project, and Shumard said problems with relocating the utility poles continues to be a challenge.

“We had an hourlong phone conversation with ComEd last week. The updates were not great. They have supply issues with the poles,” Shumard said.

He said a new issue with moving a power line that crosses from the former Lawrence Brothers property and behind Plainwell Brass goes over where a railroad bridge is slated to be built.

“Union Pacific denied the permit request to relocate that line, so they are going back to the drawing board,” Shumard said.

Shumard said the condition of streets and areas around the Second Street project that also may need repair will be evaluated once the Second Street project is complete and construction traffic is gone from those areas. That includes Fourth Avenue, he said in answering a question posed by Alderman Allen Przysucha.

“There is so much dirt and debris there that you can’t tell what’s actually underneath it right now, so until it’s cleaned up, we are not sure,” Shumard said.

In other street-related work, the council approved a pay request for $100,785 to Hoerr Construction for sanitary sewer rehabilitation and improvements.

In answer to a question from Alderman Jim Wise, Shumard said the sanitary sewer rehabilitation project is about 88% complete.

The council approved an agreement with the Illinois Department of Transportation to upgrade sidewalk ramps along Illinois Route 2 to be in compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act, including four at Second Avenue and four at Third Avenue.

Mayor Diana Merdian read a proclamation for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday and called on residents to honor King’s legacy of service.

“As mayor, I am proud to issue this proclamation for the city of Sterling, and I invite all residents to honor his legacy by listening with open hearts, serving with a purpose and believing in the power of community,” Merdian said.