NORTHAMPTON — The city has closed a portion of the Main Street sidewalk in front of the Florence Bank building after engineering consultants found that the section posed “an immediate risk of collapse.”

The conditions of the downtown sidewalks are currently being assessed by consultants in preparation for the city’s upcoming Picture Main Street project, which seeks to expand downtown sidewalks and narrow the streets to one lane each direction. During these examinations, consultants are inspecting the vault, or the empty space between the sidewalk and the ground that are privately-owned extensions of nearby building foundations.

The affected area stretches along the section of 56-58 Main St. near the intersection of King and Pleasant streets, the building that houses Florence Bank, an empty space where Spoleto’s restaurant used to be, and several upper-floor businesses and apartments.

The building, which is owned by Eric Suher, remains open. “This concern pertains only to the sidewalk, not to the building,” the mayor’s office said in a statement.

VHB, the engineering consultant hired by the city, reported, “The steel framing spanning from the building face to the exterior basement wall in one location is severely corroded, and… it appears that it is no longer structurally adequate to support load. At this time, we recommend restricting [sidewalk] vehicular and pedestrian traffic within the affected area until temporary shoring can be installed.”

It is currently unknown how long the sidewalk will remain closed. In a release on Thursday, the city stated Suher had been notified of the findings.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.