A July 4 celebration in Ketchum will celebrate the completion of the first phase of the Fourth Street Heritage Corridor mall.
Fourth Street between Walnut and Leadville avenues has been paved and will be open for traffic on Thursday, June 28, and then the one block between East and Leadville avenues will be shut down again for the Fourth of July, said Ketchum spokeswoman Kim Rogers.
The closure will be from 1 p.m. and run through the conclusion of evening music events.
Thirty years in the making, the corridor will have wider sidewalks, narrower streets, new streetlights, places for public art and gatherings and it will accommodate city bike paths. It will eventually span the entire length of the eight-block street from Spruce to Second Avenue.
The entire reconstruction will take three years with about two to three blocks scheduled for reconstruction each year.
Previously, there had been concern from area business owners about disruption in the downtown core during construction and the City Council decided that work could be done on the Walnut to Leadville section.
The first phase is expected to cost about $900,000, and the entire project could cost about $4.5 million. There will be a ribbon cutting for the corridor at 4 p.m., July 4.
Fourth of July festivities will run from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. and include a Kids' Carnival, a variety of musical performances and will end with a concert by musician Paul Cox and friends.
There is no charge for the musical performances. Food, beer and soda will be available. There is a small charge for the Kids' Carnival.
The celebration is sponsored by the city of Ketchum, the Sun Valley-Ketchum Chamber & Visitors Bureau, the Ketchum Urban Renewal Agency, the Ketchum Community Development Corporation, Hawley Graphics and Apples Bar and Grill.
Sun Valley will have a fireworks display starting at dusk, and it should be visible from most areas in Ketchum.
Construction of the first phase of the Fourth Street Heritage Corridor in Ketchum is nearly complete. A celebration commemorating the completion will be held July 4. Photo by Willy Cook
