Paving in downtown Beaufort is moving faster than expected, which means residents and business owners should anticipate lane closures throughout the city sooner than originally scheduled.

APAC Inc., the S.C. Department of Transportation's contractor for the re-paving projects, not only finished construction on Bay Street in three instead of four days, but sent crews to Lafayette Street on Thursday to get a head start there. Work was wrapping up Friday; originally, it wasn't expected to begin there until Monday.

APAC officials said they expect to work next week on the section of Charles Street between Boundary and Bay streets, and on North Street between East and Adventure streets. That work was originally slated for Sept. 16 to 20.

The final segment of paving work is for Waddell Road between Battery Creek and Talbird roads, and Battery Creek Road between Allison and Mossy Oaks roads. It was originally scheduled for Sept. 23 to 30.

Cooperative weather and use of multiple crews are accelerating the pace of work. When milling wraps up on one road so that asphalt can be applied, the milling machinery is sent to the next street on the list. On longer stretches, like Lafayette Street, separate crews can work simultaneously from opposite ends, APAC officials said.

Except for the commercial section of Bay Street, the streets will not be entirely blocked to vehicles. Partial lane closures will still allow access to homes and businesses in affected areas.

In other changes about town:

• Shoofly Kitchen, 1209 Boundary St., closed Wednesday. The owners could not be reached for comment but posted a goodbye to the "Shoofly family" on Facebook, "Everyone has touched our lives deeply and have added more to our hearts! We will truly miss everyone. Thanks for all your support!" Shoofly opened in January 2010 and served breakfast, lunch and Sunday brunch.
• Simply Southern Repurposed, 709 Bay St., and Simply Southern Too, 705 Bay St. are consolidating. Simply Southern Too opened in March 2012 as additional space, but owner Darlene Kelly is running a sale to reduce inventory so everything fits in the original 709 storefront. Information: 843-379-9740
• Connecticut-based J.S. Doig Restoration, which specializes in modern refinishing and repair, is moving to 24 Market St. in Habersham, the former home of Beaufort Dog. A soft opening is planned Sept. 23 and a grand opening Oct. 4 to coincide with its planned, monthy "First Fridays" celebration. Information: 860-930-5070, jsdoigrestoration.com
• A new restaurant is under construction at 27 Market St. in Habersham. Leo Gannon is renovating the space to open The Spaghetti Club, which will include a bar, entertainment stage and several varieties of pasta. He said he is optimistic the restaurant will be open by the end of October.
• "A" Bail Now! Bail Bonds Inc. has closed its Beaufort location at 1908 Boundary St. as part of a restructuring. Owner Don Mescia said he might open at another location in the area, but for now the business will operate Beaufort-area clients out of its Bluffton location. Information: 843-379-4150, abailnowbailbonds.com

Follow reporter Erin Moody at twitter.com/IPBG_Erin.

Related content:

• Paving to start on Lafayette Street in Beaufort, Sept. 4, 2013
• Bay Street paving grinds ahead in downtown Beaufort + video, Sept. 3, 2013
• About Town: Shoofly restaurant opens in Beaufort, Jan. 25, 2010
• Simply Southern gets second location two doors down, March 23, 2012

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