Construction on the long-awaited Streetscape project starts next week. The project is aimed to enhance the landscape of downtown Richmond Hill. The construction bid for the project was awarded to Arco, Inc. and came in at about $342,000.

City officials are asking residents to be cautious while driving through downtown Richmond Hill over the next several months due to ongoing construction. Officials are also excited about the new look this will bring to Richmond Hill, around the area of City Hall.

"I think the residents of Richmond Hill will be very pleased with the final product," Planning and Zoning Director Steve Scholar said.

Scholar said land surveying begins Monday, and ground breaking is slated for the end of the week. He said traffic may be disrupted along Cedar Street and Richard Davis Drive and encourages drivers to slow it down as they drive down that particular stretch of Hwy. 144.

The project includes sidewalks and a grassy median on Ford Avenue in front of Richard R. Davis Drive. New landscaping will stretch from city hall to the police station. There will be new short term parking spaces in front of city hall, a grassy traffic island, live oaks, sidewalks and crosswalks added to the area between city hall and the police station. A new sidewalk will also border Richard R. Davis Drive.

The city received a transportation enhancement grant for $300,000 in 2007 and hopes to receive further grant funding in the future to carry the streetscape project down Ford Avenue to Highway 17.