Lake Norman road’s $35M widening to 4 lanes finally moves forward

LAKE NORMAN, N.C. — A $35 million road expansion project sought by the town of Cornelius and its residents for nearly two decades is finally moving forward, Deputy Town Manager Cynthia Broomfield told the town Board of Commissioners Monday night.

“It just takes a lot of time to get these projects off the ground,” Broomfield said about the state’s nearly 3-mile planned widening of West Catawba Avenue from Jetton Road to Sam Furr Road (N.C. 73) in Huntersville.

According to our partners at the Charlotte Observer, the state plans to widen the bottlenecked stretch from two to four lanes with a center median and 8- to 10-foot pedestrian/bicycle paths on both sides of the road, Broomfield said. This project and others saw “multiple delays” over the years due to changes in how the state rates projects, state financial issues, cost increases, and other projects ranking higher in priority, she said. The expansion will address current and future congestion and improve safety for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists, Broomfield said.

Right-of-way acquisition has just been completed, she said. That took four years, she said.

Now utilities are being relocated, and that will take about a year. Trees have been or are being cleared for the relocations.

“Utility relocations are what folks are seeing right now,” Broomfield said. New electric poles will be placed beginning in February.

The state expects to open sealed bids from general contractors for construction of the new lanes and paths in December 2027, Broomfield said. Construction will start roughly three or four months after the bids are opened. The project should be completed by 2030.

“I know it hurts right now; it’s painful to see,” Broomfield said. “But these are priorities the town set, and they are in progress right now.”

“If we hang in there until 2030, 2031 or so, we’ll be seeing that relief from congestion, the greatly improved safety for our motorists and pedestrians, and it’s all built with long-term needs in mind.”

©2026 Cox Media Group