The Empire Avenue improvement project continues, and the City of Bend announced today the impending closure of Butler Market Road at 27th Street. It will last all summer long. On the plus side, the Purcell Boulevard canal bridge will re-open on April 13, the same day Butler Market closes.

Here’s the full press release:

As part of the Empire Corridor Improvements Project, additional segments of NE Butler Market Road will be closed starting April 13. The scheduled closures on Butler Market are at 27th Street, Deschutes Market Road, Cole Road and Eagle Road. These closures will extend for five months, to mid-September. Also, NE 27th Street north of Jill Avenue will be closed April 13 to July 27.

Meanwhile, the Purcell Boulevard Bridge that crosses the North Unit Irrigation District Canal – closed since February – will reopen the same day the Butler Market Road closures begin.

The road closures are necessary to allow construction of new roundabouts at 27th Street, Deschutes Market Road and Eagle Road.

Residents of Nasu Park, Marys Grace and Monticello Estates will need to use detours. Nasu Park and Marys Grace access will be from Sandalwood Drive and Butler Market Road. Monticello Estates access will be from Deschutes Market Road north of Monticello Drive.

The accompanying map shows the new detour routes. Pedestrian and bicycle traffic in this area will also be affected by the road closures.

Detour routes for drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists are shown at www.bendoregon.gov/empire. For more information go to www.bendoregon.gov/empire or call the construction hotline: 541-200-6979.

Also, the City of Bend will be releasing a weekly road and traffic report on Fridays during peak construction season to help members of our community plan the quickest, safest and most reliable routes to their destinations. The weekly report is intended to provide information about various projects within City limits that impact public roadways. This year we will move to a subscriber-only eNotification system. To receive the weekly report, individuals must subscribe to Weekly Road and Traffic Reports, found under “News” at www.bendoregon.gov/enews.

Good to know if you live northeast and need to plan grocery/medical runs.