Byers Street and the Johnson Street entrance to the Wharf Lot in downtown Staunton are closed until further notice as part of the city’s ongoing flood mitigation and infrastructure preventative maintenance efforts.
During Staunton City Council‘s regular meeting Thursday night, council was informed that safety concerns prohibit vehicular traffic over Lewis Creek, which runs underground. Of most concern is the entrance to the Wharf Lot from Johnson Street.
“I want to thank our Public Works team for their quick response and creative problem-solving to minimize the impact of this closure. Creating a new entrance means we can partially restore access to the Wharf Parking Lot less than 24-hours after closing it. We appreciate the community’s patience as we work through this process,” said City Manager Leslie Beauregard.
Engineers are performing a tunnel survey and structural evaluation to explore the conditions where Gum Springs, also referred to as Peyton Creek, and Lewis Creek run underground. Evaluations actually began after severe flooding in August 2020. A portion of American Rescue Plan Act funding was allocated by city council in 2022 to fund the current study.
Engineers became concerned last Friday with the structural integrity of the tunnel in several specific areas, primarily around the Wharf. At their recommendation and out of an abundance of caution, the city at first limited traffic over the tunnel. However, the Johnson Street entrance and Byers Street were later coned off to vehicular traffic and remain coned off.
Staunton Public Works created a new entrance into the western half of the Wharf Parking Lot from Lewis Street. Vehicles may travel on Byers Street from Lewis Street to reach the Wharf Lot, but through traffic is prohibited.
Parking is also available to residents and tourists in the New Street and Johnson Street parking garages.
Byers Street Bistro has remained open for business, including patio dining. The restaurant shared on its Facebook page for customers to enter the Wharf Lot from Lewis Street via the new entrance.
The Wharf Lot is also the location for Staunton’s Farmers Market, which opens in April.
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Staunton: Wharf, Byers Street closed for emergency repairs Friday
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Rebecca Barnabi
