A two-block section of the southernmost end of Gay Street will be closed, starting early tomorrow morning (Friday, Nov. 19), to accommodate a large commercial crane that will be staged for work on the top levels of the First Horizon Bank building downtown.

Friday through Sunday, Nov. 21, the 700 and 800 blocks of South Gay Street will be closed between Main Street and Church Avenue as the crane is assembled and mobilized. The closure will include the intersection of Gay Street and Cumberland Avenue, but the intersections at Main and Church will remain open.

Gay Street will be closed to all vehicular traffic in this section, with signed detours in place. Access will be maintained to businesses in the 700 and 800 blocks.

Commuters crossing the Gay Street Bridge to Gay Street or traveling James White Parkway to Cumberland Avenue for Saturday night’s University of Tennessee football game at Neyland Stadium will be affected. Taking an alternative route or allocating enough time to navigate detours in place is recommended.

Starting Monday, Nov. 22, the crane will be in place in the 800 block, and the 700 block will reopen, including the Cumberland Avenue intersection with Gay Street. The Main Street intersection will continue to remain open. The one-block closure in front of the First Horizon bank building will continue through Thursday, Dec. 9.

From Friday, Dec. 10, through Sunday, Dec. 12, the crane will be taken down and disassembled, once again necessitating the closure of both the 700 and 800 blocks, with the Gay Street-Cumberland Avenue intersection again closing for that weekend.