SAPULPA, Okla. — The City of Sapulpa has started construction on their “Re-Deweing Sapulpa” street redesign project.

The project originally started as a way to change the accessibility for downtown Sapulpa. Now, it’s making the downtown area more walkable and accessible for those with disabilities.

The City is providing wider and level sidewalks and more handicapped parking spaces for everyone to enjoy the town. It’s also narrowing the street to two lanes instead of four, so people have to slow down and see what downtown has to offer.

Lucy Lawson, Director of Marketing and Public Relations with the City of Sapulpa, says they’ve heard concerns from the small and local businesses on Dewey Avenue about how it’s going to affect them.

While the construction may cause a slow down for a few months, Lawson said this is a need for the city.

“Somebody that has grown up in Sapulpa and to see downtown, that was nothing when I was in school,” she said. “You couldn’t have a date night in downtown, you left and went to Tulsa. So, to see our downtown completely transformed to something that I can enjoy daily or on the weekends and I could take my kids as we go for a night out to eat or whatever, our downtown is something to be proud of and something to visit.”

While construction is going on, there are alternative routes for you to take to go around Dewey Avenue.

There will be parking available on North Main street and the sidewalks will be open for anyone to continue to support the businesses along the construction on Dewey Avenue.

The City said the construction project should be complete by October.