Norfolk's Monticello Garage to be razed; traffic detoured

NORFOLK

As building demolitions go, this one probably won't draw any protests from those who champion historic preservation. But downtown shoppers and college students may hang their heads.

And anyone planning to travel in the Monticello Avenue and Freemason Street area may have to plan a different route for the next several days.

The detours come as a city parking garage on the site, north of MacArthur Center mall, is razed to allow construction of the new Wachovia Center to begin.

In addition to shoppers and visitors, the Monticello Garage was used daily by hundreds of Tidewater Community College students who enjoyed its close proximity to campus buildings along Granby Street. It was closed earlier this year, however.

Since, then, it has stood dark and abandoned, surrounded by yellow tape and "no trespassing" signs. Demolition work has already begun, but starting Thursday, portions close to the nearby streets will start to come down, city officials said Wednesday.

Contractors will begin that demolition at 8 a.m. with work continuing through 8 p.m.; work will continue on Friday between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. No work will be done on Saturday, but demolition will resume on Sunday, between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. and continue Monday between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Freemason Street will be closed from its intersection with Monticello Avenue to the west end of the MacArthur Center Garage. Access to the mall's service entrance, from the intersection of Bank and Freemason streets, will be allowed.

The northbound lanes of Monticello Ave. between Freemason and Charlotte streets will be closed. Northbound traffic will be detoured onto Freemason Street, then right onto Granby Street, then right onto Charlotte Street and back to Monticello Ave.

Monticello Avenue and Freemason Street will not be closed on Saturday.

Wachovia Center, a $150 million project, is scheduled to open in 2010.

The 22-story complex will include 250,000 square feet of office space, 175 apartments and 50,000 square feet of retail space spread across 4.5 acres. A primary tenant will be Wachovia Bank and officials said earlier this year that its occupancy rate had already hit 68 percent.

It also will have 2,000 parking spaces in two garages to be built by the city at a cost of $50 million, to be paid for by parking fees.

The city has donated 1.4 acres of land and the air rights over one of the garages to the developer, S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co.