Another building along Interstate 44 is about to disappear. Crews on Tuesday tore down the Victorian Inn, a motel off Riverside Drive.
The demolition process is 70% complete, with just 100 more properties to clear.
"Although we are excited that we're at this point, we still know there is a lot of work to do," said project manager Matt Casillas. "We still have a lot of highway that's left to be widened."
ODOT is expanding I-44 from Riverside to Yale from four lanes to six.
Along with demolition, engineers had to design a new drainage system.
"We're going to be collecting a lot more water. We're also trying to help the city of Tulsa with some drainage areas," said Casillas.
That's where the Perryman Ditch comes in. It's an elaborate system of concrete cells buried underground that will direct storm water into the Arkansas River. More than a mile long, crews will use 3,600 truck-loads of concrete and almost six million pounds of steel.
Construction on the Interstate will begin at the end of the year at Harvard.
