Board approves three closures: Thanksgiving 5K, cultural food event and one-day sidewalk closure

The Board of Works approved three separate closure requests during the Sept. 22 meeting: a Thanksgiving morning 5K organized by the Boys & Girls Club, a Lebanon High School Key Club cultural food day on Sept. 27, and a one-day sidewalk and adjacent parking-space closure Sept. 24 for Ridgeline Electrical to install front-of-building light fixtures.

Why it matters: These closures temporarily alter traffic and pedestrian access downtown and around Memorial Park for community events and for private-contractor work on the downtown facade.

Eric Richards presented the Boys & Girls Club request for the Gravy Chase 5K on Thanksgiving morning. Richards described the route starting at Clues Brews, going up Meridian Street, onto Newland Drive, around Memorial Park and back; he told the board the event expects about 500 participants. The board voted to approve the street closure as presented.

Emily Aber, president of the Lebanon High School Key Club, requested a street closure for a community potluck and cultural food day scheduled for Sept. 27, with event start at 7 p.m. and setup beginning about 6:30 p.m. Aber said admission is free and participants can sign up to bring culturally representative dishes; planned activities include music, games and a "guess the country" trivia tied to dishes. The board approved that request as presented.

Engineering staff then presented a late permit request from Ridgeline Electrical to close the sidewalk and two adjacent parking spaces in front of the 109'111 North Meridian Street building (the restored ballet-school building on the east side of the square) on Wednesday, Sept. 24, to allow a lift to install light fixtures. The board approved the one-day closure and removal of the parking spaces for the work.

Each closure was moved, seconded and recorded as "Aye" on the meeting record. Conditions such as barricades and maintaining emergency access were discussed for construction- and trail-related closures elsewhere in the meeting, but no additional restrictions were appended to the three approved street/sidewalk requests recorded in the minutes.