STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK

April 1 kicks off several months of detours on Ketchum’s Main Street as the Main Street renovation gets underway. And that’s no April Fool’s joke.

Utility work will begin Monday between 2nd and 4th street necessitating full closures in that area for two to three weeks.

Access to Main Street intersections, EXCEPT SUN VALLEY ROAD, will remain open.

When that work is done, electrical work will move to the street between River and 2nd Street, resulting in intermittent access to the 1st and 2nd Street intersections and affecting southbound lanes.

The good news in all this is that parking at the Washington Avenue Lot will be converted from paid to free, long-term parking to accommodate the Main Street reconstruction project. The maximum parking stay is seven days, but don’t try to park your RV, boat or trailer there.

The City of Ketchum did not receive any bids for the Main Street reconstruction project during the pubic bidding process. So, the city will now negotiate directly with interested parties, with the hope of a proposal being presented to the City Council on Monday, said Mayor Neil Bradshaw.

“The lack of bids illustrates the challenges major municipal projects present and the tight job market that remains in this post-pandemic world,” he added.