NCDOT to Partner with City of Hickory to Repair Sinkhole

RALEIGH, NC (September 26, 2016)…Governor Pat McCrory announced today that the N.C. Department of Transportation will partner with the City of Hickory to repair the sinkhole at the intersection of U.S. 70 and Seventh Street Southeast in Hickory.

At its September meeting, the N.C. Board of Transportation approved an agreement with the City of Hickory to pay for the $3.2 million repair project. Work will entail excavating the area, extending the culvert under U.S. 70 to the existing 96-inch corrugated steel pipe under Seventh Street and backfilling the site.

“We’re pleased to help the City of Hickory reach a solution to this long-standing problem,” Transportation Secretary Nick Tennyson said. “Addressing this issue is essential to maintaining the safety and quality of our highway infrastructure.”

The project will prevent continued failure of the pipe that resulted in sinkholes in August 2002, July 2005 and July 2013. Overflow from the blocked pipe causes flooding on U.S. 70 and adjacent business properties.

Under the agreement, NCDOT will provide $1 million toward the cost of the project and the city will provide $2.2 million, as well as sharing in any additional costs beyond the estimated $3.2 million for the project. The city will also acquire the property needed for the repairs.

The project is expected to be awarded late this fall and complete in summer 2017.