Las Palmas Avenue from Highway 33 to First Street will be closed for more than three days starting this weekend, as crews work on improving the railroad tracks there and installing new sidewalks on both sides of the street.

Patterson Public Works Director Mike Willett said the street will likely be closed at around 10 p.m. Friday, Sept. 11, and will hopefully open around 7 or 8 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 15. Motorists will be detoured in the meantime, likely to M Street to the north and Sperry Avenue to the south.

The California Northern Railroad Company will be replacing the tracks nearest First Street and adding concrete pads to make the crossing smoother for pedestrians and automobiles. The set of tracks nearest the highway, which are no longer in use, will be removed.

The city’s Public Works Department will also apply hot asphalt to ensure a smooth transition between the new tracks and the roadway.

In addition, because the road will be closed anyway, the city decided to install full concrete sidewalks on both sides of Las Palmas. A contract for the sidewalk installation was awarded to Rolfe Construction for $7,000 at the Patterson City Council meeting on Sept. 1.

The city also expects to incur about $4,000 in additional costs, including asphalt, inspections and testing, rental of supplies and staff overtime.