A six-block stretch of East Main Street, closed for nearly two weeks by flood waters, reopened Wednesday on the eastbound lanes, and the other side may open today.

Thursday, April 19, 2001

A six-block stretch of East Main Street, closed for nearly two weeks by flood waters, reopened Wednesday on the eastbound lanes, and the other side may open today.

Pooled water on the westbound side in front of Godfather’s Pizza was still preventing traffic from passing through, however.

&uot;We’re hopeful that we can open the westbound lanes by (today) late afternoon, but that’s contingent on weather and other factors,&uot; said Brian Jergenson, public affairs representative for the Minnesota Department of Transportation.

Jergenson said between six and eight inches of water remained on the street’s westbound lanes. The water seems to be receding at a rate of about three inches per day, he said.

MnDOT engineers decided to open the eastbound lanes Wednesday morning because the water had totally receded from the roadway. After checking for any residual water damage such as potholes of washouts, roadblock signs were removed and eastbound traffic resumed.

Jergenson said streets with pooled water can cause damage when the moisture softens the road surface and soils beneath the road. Many times the damage doesn’t occur until heavy vehicles use the street, he said.

&uot;The engineers say it looks like East Main didn’t suffer any serious damage from the water,&uot; Jergenson said. &uot;When the water disappears from the westbound lane, it should be business as usual.&uot;

The Union Center and Premiere Video, two businesses that were forced to close during the flood, reopened this week. Premiere manager Julie Linnes said she expects business to resume at normal levels by the weekend, but she’s leaving the sand bags in the back of the building just in case.

&uot;We don’t want to let our guard down prematurely,&uot; Linnes said.