Say Goodbye to the Barrels This Week in Downtown Rochester

Just in time for Small Business Saturday, the barrels blocking most of downtown Rochester's Main Street are scheduled to be moved out of the way this week.

The road is set to fully re-open to traffic on Friday, though at a recent Rochester City Council meeting, city leaders hinted that the event could happen as early as Wednesday.

Benches and trash cans were installed last week; streetlights are set to be installed this week.  

The re-opening is more than seven months in the making: the Main Street Makeover began in April. It involved the removal and rebuilding of the road from the Paint Creek Bridge north of University Drive to the Clinton River Bridge south of downtown. The project was budgeted at about $5.6 million. 

Here's a look back, in photos and in stories, at the highlights of the project. What has most surprised you during the work? Leave a comment and tell your neighbors about it.

• What Will Happen to Prehistoric Human Bones Found Under Rochester? Rochester’s Main Street redevelopment has something in common with similar projects under way across the country: workers and on-site archaeologists discovering prehistoric human remains while digging far below the road.
• Century-Old Streetcar Tracks Uncovered Below Rochester's Main Street The photos of the evidence of railroad tracks under the road will are proof of more history being unveiled.
• School Community Shows Its Support for Downtown  The McGregor Elementary School community took to Main Street to shop and dine in support of the local merchants.
•  A cash mob with a twist had a pilot run in our construction-filled downtown. 
• Video of the Day: Now That's What We Call Heavy Machinery Inside most Downtown Rochester businesses, you've had a front row seat to the most talked-about show in town.
• Will Ewe Never Mind the Construction and See the Flock Downtown? Surely ewe have heard the news. There were more than two dozen colorful and creative fiberglass sheep on display around downtown Rochester as part of the Ewe Revue 2. 
• Video of the Day: Patch Reader Takes a Last Drive Down 'Old' Main Street Ride along with Patch blogger and Rochester resident David Gifford as he takes one last farewell drive down the old Main Street. 
• City to Metal-Detecting Sleuths: Be Patient — Or Be ArrestedMetal detectors at midnight — or any time of day — will not be tolerated. That's the message Rochester officials want you to hear amid downtown's Main Street Makeover.

For more news about the Main Street Makeover, see our special section on Patch.