Construction to alleviate flooding from a Northwest Arlington stream will close part of Old Dominion Drive for the summer.

The target date to close the road and begin work is June 11, said Michael Collins, chief of engineering for Arlington’s environmental services department. That date is flexible, he said, but the work will begin in mid-June.

Sagres Contractor will receive $500 per day if the project is completed by the Sept. 3 deadline. A $500 per day late fee will be charged if Sagres fails to complete the work on time, Collins said.

The Pimmit Run flood-control project has been in the works since 1998. The complexity of the project kept construction from starting until now, Collins said.

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A score of homes are susceptible to flooding when Pimmit Run stream swells with stormwater. The homes, built in the 1950s and ‘60s, were constructed before builders understood stream patterns, Collins said.

The $900,000 project this summer completes just half of the flood control project, protecting about a dozen homes. It consists of replacing a culvert, or 8-foot-wide pipe, that runs under Old Dominion Drive. Contractors will remove it and replace it with a 16-foot-wide arch.

While the culvert is replaced, Old Dominion Drive will be closed between George Mason Drive and North Dickerson Street. Traffic will have to detour on Williamsburg Boulevard and George Mason Drive. A temporary stoplight will operate at their intersection.

Construction on the second half of the control plan, replacing a culvert beneath Williamsburg Boulevard, is expected at some point in 2008. This will protect another dozen homes from flooding, Collins said.

County staff have scheduled a public meeting Tuesday to describe the project.

The meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. in room B101 of Yorktown High School, 5201 28th St. North.

mhegstad@dcexaminer.com