Street near the Bannock County Courthouse remains closed. Here’s when it will reopen

POCATELLO – The street behind the Bannock County Courthouse in Pocatello remains closed after months of construction. Despite looking finished, county officials say it will be several more months before it reopens.

The work that’s been done on the block of North 6th Avenue between East Clark Street and Center Street is only one aspect of a larger project to improve accessibility to the courthouse. County spokeswoman Emma Iannacone says the project has been “a long time coming.” The road will reopen and a ribbon cutting will be held when the whole project is completed in May.

“We’re all going to be celebrating this long period of construction being over and celebrating how patient and accommodating has been as we’ve been navigating (it). A celebration is well-deserved,” Iannacone says.

Before the road project, the county renovated the inside of the courthouse to make it accessible to people with disabilities. Still, there were issues with the exterior accommodations of the building.

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While a section of the curb in front of the courthouse entrance on North 6th Avenue served as accessible parking, Iannacone says there wasn’t convenient access for people to get onto the sidewalk. Once a visitor was able to get to the entrance, they had to take a long downward sloped ramp. Special Projects Manager Dan Kendall says it was a “hazard” for several reasons.

Kendall explains that the narrow ramp was a slick surface with inadequate drainage and no proper handrails. During the winter, snow would blow onto the ramp “as fast as we could get it (off) there.”

Additionally, some accidents involving pedestrians and vehicles happened on North 6th Avenue.

In order to fix this, the county tore out and completely redesigned and repaved the road. Once it’s open to traffic again, it will be a one-way road heading towards Center Street. There will be a total of 20 accessible parking spots by the courthouse entrance and the Bannock County Elections building.

The new ramp to the courthouse entrance is shorter and less steep and it leads to a new vestibule that will provide visitors protection from the elements. There are now ramps installed at both entrances to the elections office as well.

While the road is paved, the county hasn’t reopened it to the public yet because the project isn’t fully complete. The county plans to install new weapon detection units at all entrances to the courthouse, and hasn’t received the units yet.

Kendall says allowing people to access the road could cause problems for the contractors while they install the new security units.

“I don’t want to create confusion or a hazard by saying, ‘Come on in, use the parking spots,’ but then (make people) walk clear around the building to get in’,” Kendall says.

Iannacone says the improvements will increase functionality for those with disabilities. She is excited for the project to be complete and for visitors to see the changes.

“We want people’s experience to be as seamless as possible, regardless of their abilities,” Iannacone says.

While the change in traffic pattern on North 6th Avenue may be confusing initially, Kendall said that people will benefit from the changes.

“We hope that people can make the adjustment as we get it open … but it’ll take some time to get used to,” Kendall says. “I think it will create a safe environment and people will definitely benefit from the parking.”