Preparations for major streetscape renovations are slated to begin next week in downtown Mathews. Members of the Mathews Main Street Committee, downtown property owners, and others were told during a luncheon held at the library last Wednesday to expect to see construction trucks very soon.

Mathews Main Street chair Bette Dillehay said that the renovation is an historic event for members of her committee. Since 1994, she said, committee members have worked tirelessly to raise money to provide the match for the Virginia Department of Transportation’s Enhancement Grant that is funding the project.

Mathews County Planning and Zoning Director Thomas Jenkins said that the bid by Howard Brothers Contractor Inc. of New Kent County had come in lower than budgeted for the project. This will result in a substantial savings on the projected costs that will enable more work to be done than originally planned, he said.

Howard Brothers’ bid of $1.19 million includes redoing si...