Saginaw St. will reopen in downtown Flint next week

Mayor Sheldon Neeley and the City of Flint are excited to announce that Saginaw Street in downtown Flint will reopen ahead of schedule the week of July 22, and will be open as planned for the Crim Festival of Races, Back to the Bricks, and Bikes on the Bricks.

“The infrastructure improvements we’ve made to Saginaw St. will ensure that downtown Flint is a thriving business district for generations to come, attracting commerce, residents, and visitors,” Mayor Neeley said. “I am so proud of our beautiful, unique streetscape, and I encourage everyone to come back downtown, have dinner, catch a show, support our local businesses, and enjoy the atmosphere.”

Flint’s iconic main thoroughfare has been restored brick-by-brick and all underground utilities have been upgraded from Court St. to the Flint River. The project replaced the 100-year-old water main and all water service line connections to businesses, and upgraded the electrical infrastructure with new conduits for lights and meters. In addition, two gas mains, all tree grates, and about 90% of sidewalks along Saginaw St. have been replaced.

For the first time since 1936, the original bricks from 1898 were picked up and completely relaid. Any damaged bricks were replaced with bricks from the same era, sourced from an Iowa company that salvages vintage street bricks. These clay bricks were baked for two to three weeks at high temperatures, and after 125 years, they still hold up under vehicle traffic. Mass production of these specialized street bricks ended in the 1920s.

One major change to the streetscape is the removal of the bricks from the intersections. The intersections have been repaved with brick-stamped concrete to reduce wear and tear on the road, since vehicles push the bricks to the side when they turn at intersections. All-new ADA-compliant ramps and paved concrete street crossings also make Saginaw St. more accessible.

The project broke ground in April 2023 and has been moving along ahead of schedule this summer, with completion originally expected in early August, in time for Flint’s largest summer festivals. Now, all of the bricks have been laid, and traffic striping for medians, traffic lanes, crosswalks and parking spaces will be completed in the next week.

The Michigan Department of Transportation provided about $2.3 million in funding for the project, while the City of Flint’s Major Roads Fund contributed $3.4 million. An additional $2.8 million from the federal Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN Act) funded the replacement of the 12-inch water main under Saginaw St.