Work continues on two of the City of Redmond’s downtown projects, as construction ramped up this week.

Scheduled to be completed by the end of 2017, the two-way street conversion of Cleveland Street and Redmond Way is now in its second phase.

Lisa Singer, project manager for the conversion as well as the Downtown Park, said work on the conversion project currently means underground utility work. Most of this work, she said, is water line and sewer work and is being done on Redmond Way from 164th Avenue Northeast, eastward.

As a result of this work, Singer said Redmond Way is reduced to one lane for several months. According to a city press release, the lane closures will be on the south side of Redmond Way, between 160th and 170th avenues northeast. The closures will be in effect 24 hours a day, through the fall, the release states.

In addition to the daytime work, the release states that there will be night work, Monday through Thursday. The night work — for underground utility installation — will begin around Tuesday.

Singer said if businesses and residents will be affected by the night work, such as having their water shut off, the city will notify them ahead of time, adding that crews will keep the noisiest work to before 10 p.m. and during the day.

She said the conversion is part of the city’s overall plan to create a more complete street grid in downtown.

The second downtown project the city is working on is the Downtown Park on the east side of 161st Avenue Northeast between Redmond Way and Cleveland Street.

The park is now closed as the first phase of construction has begun.

Singer said earth work is currently being done to remove peat soil so they can replace it with soils that will better support the park once it is built, as well as allow for better rainwater infiltration. The earth work is scheduled to be complete this fall and main park construction will begin in early 2017.

Downtown Park is now closed until its grand opening in the summer of 2018.

B. Sanders, a senior park planner on the Downtown Park project, said the idea for a park in the heart of downtown was first conceived around 2006 or 2007. After about 10 years of planning and designing, she said it is “great” to finally see the dirt moving on the project.

Singer added that it will be exciting once the park is complete and seamlessly connects with the Redmond Central Connector.

In addition to these two city projects, a number of private development projects are also underway in downtown.

Due to the amount of work being done around town, Jill Smith, economic development manager and downtown liaison for the city, said they have been doing outreach regularly with the community as construction is impactful.

“It’s not pretty and it’s not fun,” she acknowledged.

Smith said the city has been communicating regularly with downtown businesses and residents, sending them a mail-out with information as well as emailing weekly updates so they can know what to expect.

She said the city has also developed programming, which is scheduled to begin Sept. 12, to encourage residents to come out downtown and support local businesses as they are still open during construction.

“That’s the city’s commitment to assist businesses during these projects,” Smith said, adding that the city encourages people to frequent the downtown businesses.

For more information on these projects, visit redmond.gov/downtown.