Students and staff wondering when the Hillsborough Street renovation project will be complete got good news this week, as project managers reported construction will be essentially finished this month.

 The busy campus buffer will be “substantially completed by July 20,” said Tim Sudano, project engineer in the Raleigh Public Works Department. The scheduled completion date was Sept. 3. Sudano said that after July 20, contractor Hamlett Associates Inc. will only have to complete some small tasks, but the bulk of the work will be done within the next two weeks.  ”We added some stuff [to the project] since they were ahead of schedule. We’re very happy with their performance,” Sudano said of Hamlett, calling the Hillsborough Street revamp one of the smoothest projects he’s been involved with. The Hillsborough Street Project will hold a celebratory kickoff event Sept. 25, Sudano confirmed.  The Hillsborough Street renovation completion is a relief to students and staff, who have had to navigate construction obstacles since the project began on May 11, 2009.  The city’s vision for the refurbishment of Hillsborough Street was “changing the street itself from a four-lane, congested street, to a two-lane avenue moving vehicular and pedestrian traffic more safely and efficiently,” according to the Hillsborough Street Redesign website.  Driving on Hillsborough Street has been markedly easier in the completed areas, said Neal Timpe, a graduate student in technical communication, who praised the use of roundabouts. ”The traffic circle at Pullen and Hillsborough really speeds up traffic at the intersection. I used to feel like I sat at that light forever,” he said. Curran Hoffman was surprised to learn of the July completion date. ”I thought it was going to take until fall semester for them to finish. It definitely looks better.” said Hoffman, a senior in anthropology and an employee at Planet Smoothie on Hillsborough Street. “I’m excited that traffic is going to be flowing smoothly through here again.” Merchants up and down the Hillsborough Street corridor have been affected by the renovation.  ”Business has been terrible during construction. It’s killing me,” said Silvio Sestito, owner of Sylvia’s Pizza.   He was relieved to learn that the project was set to finish ahead of schedule. And despite the loss of business during construction, Sestito has high hopes for the new-look thoroughfare. ”We’ll have to wait and see after the fall, whether or not it [the renovation] helps,” he said. Sestito added that he’d like to see the new Hillsborough Street turn into a more popular night spot, much like Glenwood South. ”I hope that happens; at night, it’s dead out here” said Sestito.”But it’s going to be a challenge.”