‘Thanks for everyone’s patience’: After months of work and delays, Purcell Boulevard extension opens in NE Bend

(Update: Adding video, comments from City of Bend project engineer)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The City of Bend announced that a long-awaited Purcell Boulevard Extension opened to the public Friday after months of work and bumps in the road.

The extension from Full Moon Drive to Courtney Drive is part of the Neff and Purcell Improvement Project that began a year ago, connecting Purcell between Holliday Avenue and Courtney Drive.

The city says the new Purcell link cost $2.2 million and was funded by the voter-approved GO (general obligation) bond. Improvements include parking-protected bike lanes, new sidewalks and improved access to medical facilities such as St. Charles Bend. It also should reduce cut-through traffic through surrounding local streets.

The project's completion was delayed several times after breaking ground about a year ago, due to crews running into unexpected underground utilities.

"It's great -- we're all exhausted. It's been a long stretch -- we've ran into a lot of challenges," city Project Engineer Andrew Wells told us Friday. "It's great to get it opened, it's well-timed. Sincerely, thanks for everyone's patience. It was not an easy one, but we made it through."

The extension aims to reduce cut-through traffic through surrounding local streets. The new project also includes ADA-compliant crosswalks, parking lanes on the east side of Purcell and buffered bike lanes.

The completion of the extension comes six weeks after the Neff-Purcell project wrapped. The major upgrade to the Neff Road-Purcell Boulevard intersection took months longer than planned, due to surprises below the surface, and the intersection reopened in mid-December.

Along Purcell, some additional restoration work may continue after Friday, officials said, with minor traffic impacts.