Contractors will soon begin work on Thomasville, Ga.'s Remington Avenue Streetscape Project, aiming to improve water systems, roads and add features like sidewalks, a roundabout and a three-way signalized light. The $5.1 million project will enhance safety and traffic flow along this bustling corridor.
City of Thomasville photo
The addition of a roundabout at the intersection of Kern Street, Reid Street and Remington Avenue is another major phase in the overall streetscape project.
Contractors are preparing to begin work May 19, 2025, on the city of Thomasville, Ga.'s Remington Avenue Streetscape Project.
The first phase of the $5.1 million effort is designed to provide much-needed improvements to the portion of the corridor stretching along Remington Avenue and East Pinetree Boulevard to the intersection of Kern Street and Smith Avenue.
The Thomasville City Council awarded the construction project to The Scruggs Company in Waycross, Ga. in mid-January 2025, the Times Enterprise reported May 1, 2025.
The current phase one scope will include:
- improvements to the corridor's water, stormwater and wastewater systems;
- milling and resurfacing the entire roadway within the project's footprint;
- reducing the road width and adding sidewalks on both sides of Kern Street between Smith Avenue and Reid Street;
- adding a roundabout at the intersection of Kern, Reid and Remington Avenue;
- installing a three-way signalized light at Covington Avenue;
- building a new Butler-Mason YMCA driveway; and
- constructing a concrete median in the lane section of Remington Avenue near East Pinetree Boulevard.
"We are extremely excited to move this long-awaited project into the construction stage," Thomasville City Manager Chris White told the Times-Enterprise. "Public input and visioning sessions for the Remington Project date back to 2018. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and other variables have delayed and altered the scope of this project. We are proud of the important features being addressed in phase one of this vital project for one of our most traveled roadways."
According to Mark Harmon, Thomasville's executive director of engineering and inspections, the public feedback provided city planning officials with much-needed information regarding the community's desire for roadway improvements.
"Phase one will primarily address roadway safety, infrastructure improvements and street paving issues," he said. "A reduction of the road width at the intersection of Kern Street and Smith Avenue, along with the addition of a concrete median in the five-lane section of the Remington Avenue and East Pinetree Boulevard intersection, will greatly improve roadway safety and flow of traffic. The addition of a three-way signalized light at the Remington Avenue and Covington Avenue intersection will also assist with speed reduction."
Regarding the addition of a roundabout at the intersection of Kern Street, Reid Street and Remington Avenue, Harmon characterized that component as another major phase in the overall streetscape project.
"We expect the construction of the proposed roundabout to require a significant amount of time to complete," he told the Thomasville newspaper. "According to the Georgia Department of Transportation, roundabouts provide a reduced speed environment and offer substantial safety advantages and excellent performance in terms of traffic flow."
Each of the city's major building initiatives include a focus on improving aging infrastructure, Harmon said.
"The entire [Remington Avenue] project area will receive much needed water and wastewater system improvements," Harmon said. "Once we have addressed infrastructure upgrades and the roundabout is completed, the entire project area will be milled and resurfaced."
Early projected costs for the corridor's improvements were approximately $9 million before ballooning at one point to more than $22 million.
Harmon explained that city residents coveted a number of roadway features such as safe pedestrian access, traffic calming to control speed, landscaping and road surfacing.
"However, as the project scope expanded and inflation driven by the COVID-19 pandemic significantly increased costs, the city had to reassess what was financially feasible while addressing features important to the project and community," he said.
The Times-Enterprise noted that in the end, phase one of the Remington Avenue Streetscape Project is primarily being funded through 2018 SPLOST revenues.
Thomasville municipal officials plan to address additional community priorities, such as sidewalks along Remington Avenue from the roundabout to East Pinetree Boulevard, in future phases of the project.
"Weather permitting, we anticipate this project to be completed in 300 days," said White. "While we do expect temporary road and lane closures and additional detours, we are confident that the coordinated efforts between all parties will minimize the inconveniences created for our citizens and provide a safer and enhanced corridor for both motorists and pedestrians."
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