COMMERCE — Construction crews will begin repairing water and wastewater lines beneath Commerce streets today in preparation for the city’s road reconstruction.

The reconstruction is part of a $4.8 million project that includes the current work being done on Harlow Road. Commerce voters approved $3 million in bonds for the project, and Texas A&M University-Commerce and the Texas Water Development Board contributed the remaining funds. Construction on the three phases is scheduled to be completed in 2015.

“The reconstruction will require some water and wastewater line replacement underneath the street[s],” a city press release read. “Due to the nature of the reconstruction, periodically there will be disruption to traffic and possibly some short periods of time with no water service.”

The following streets are part of the project: Lee (from Monroe to Bois d’Arc); Bois d’Arc (from Lee to Hunt); Stonewall (from Monroe to Bryan); West Neal (from Culver to Cooper); Monroe (from Hunt to Walnut); and Washington (from Culver to Maple). Washington will not require water/waste water line work, according to Commerce City Manager Marc Clayton.

Crews will begin working on lines underneath Lee and Bois d’Arc streets. The work will disrupt residents’ commutes, according to Clayton, but the work will be worth it.

“Whenever you go in and tear up a street, it’s going to be disruptive,” he said. “It will be nice when we get through. Lee will be widened and will be a nice entrance to the university when it’s done.”

The work will be completed in three phases, according to Clayton. Portions of Monroe will be completed in all three phases, with Lee and Bois d’Arc in the first, Stonewall in the second and West Neal and Washington in the third. Work on West Neal has been pushed to the final phase due to the university’s work on their residence halls in the area, according to Clayton.

A bid for the line replacement on Lee has already been accepted. Remaining line work and reconstruction work will still need to be bid out, Clayton said.

A public information session will be held on Feb. 19 at 5 p.m. at City Hall, an hour before the regularly scheduled February city council meeting.

“Anyone who wants to ask the engineers questions about the construction is invited to come,” Clayton said. “We held a similar one before we began work on Harlow Road, and it was very popular.”

While there are still many hurdles before the city before the entire project is accomplished, Clayton is excited about what the future holds for Commerce.

“I hope that this will be the first of other road projects,” he said. “I’m hoping that the citizens say, after they see how nice the new roads are ‘I don’t mind paying a little extra in taxes to keep this going.’ Obviously, we won’t be able to go street by street repairing them, but you have to start somewhere.”