Transit hub work OK'd
Larry Thomas -- Furniture Today, March 13, 2005
High Point — The High Point City Council has given final approval to the first phase of improvements to the furniture market's transportation hub, with work on the $1.7 million project set to begin shortly after the April market.
Council members approved the city's purchase of about one- half acre of land from Showplace, the showroom building that faces the hub along Commerce Avenue. The land will allow Commerce to be widened between Hamilton and Wrenn streets to accommodate three passenger loading areas and three lanes for bus parking.
Computerized signs directing passengers to various loading areas will be erected in front of the Commerce Avenue entrance to the International Home Furnishings Center, and additional signs will be placed across the street near the end of a pedestrian walkway leading to Showplace.
Judy Mendenhall, president of the International Home Furnishings Market Authority, said the improvements should be completed before the October market. "This will make the area a lot safer for everyone," she said.
Mendenhall said 80% of the cost, or roughly $1.4 million, is covered by a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The remainder is coming from the state of North Carolina, the city of High Point, and the Market Authority, at $172,000, $80,000 and $92,000, respectively.
Long-range plans call for a three-block section of Commerce to be covered by a permanent canopy, which could cost as much as $6 million. Mendenhall said the city and the Market Authority are seeking additional federal transportation dollars for that project.
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