To keep construction of the I-95 / Crosstown Parkway interchange on schedule, and to complete work on a major drainage pond before summer rains slow progress, the Port St. Lucie City Council approved a plan Monday to allow  construction at the site on weekends, and for 12 hours a day during the week.

The extended hours were requested for a 10-week period by Johnson Brothers, the construction firm hired by the city to build the interchange.

City engineers agreed that work crews need the extra time to excavate the E-8 pond at the southwest corner of the future interchange.  The pond will hold rainwater that flows off the roadway and is a critical part of the project’s design.  Fill removed from the pond will be used as embankment material.

The South Florida Water Management district issued a 90-day permit for de-watering the pond, and completion of the pond work could be significantly delayed if the area gets heavy rains before work is done.

For more information about the project, call the city’s Engineering Department at (772) 871-5177.