“We went over nine years without a neighborhood streets program and so we know we’re not going to be able to catch up overnight,” City Manager Bryan Heck said at a recent city commission meeting.
“But we are working our crews. We supplement it with in-house paving with our neighborhood streets program. We’ve spent well over $2 million which was what our commitment was on neighborhood streets and then again, we continue to leverage additional dollars back to the community, both state and federal, so that we can pave additional roadways in our community.”
The U.S. 40 project is estimated to cost $811,962, with the Ohio Department of Transportation providing 80% of those funds. The city plans to apply for financial assistance and accept a grant from the Ohio Public Works Commission for up to $195,162, which would cover the city’s portion.
The Main Street and Selma Road project is more costly at just more than $3 million. ODOT will fund just over $2 million, and the city plans to apply for and accept a grant from OPWC for up to $854,027, which is the remaining total for which the city would be responsible.
Since 2018, when city residents approved a tax levy, the city has repaved more than 100 roadways, including 83 residential streets. From 2009 to 2018, the city had no dedicated road funding.
Roads typically have a 10- to 15-year lifespan before they need to be repaved or reconstructed.
The city’s minimum goal is to spend $2 million per year on road improvement.
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