The Balment Stairs will be closed for the next few months while crews work on their replacement.
City officials said the stairs have been closed off, and the project should be finished by the end of October.
Mayor Wayne Price said the existing stairs were starting to show their age.
“They’ve been there for as long as I could remember. They’re made of wood, and of course, they’re deteriorated and decomposed to the point that we could be looking at safety concerns if we didn’t take some action,” said Price.
Price said the new stairs will look a lot different once the project is wrapped up.
“I think they’re to the point where just an upgrade or some remedial work would not have been adequate,” said Price. “They’re going to remove the wooden covered stairs and replace them with metal grate stairs without a canopy.”
An alternate path off 17th Avenue South, behind the Senior’s Hall, and past the Col. Baker House to 1st Street South is available in the meantime.