The estimated construction cost is $1.54 million, using some combination of local funding and federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality funds.
There was consideration of constructing a wider shared-use path, but utility and right-of-way impacts led the city to determine that a shared use path is not cost-reasonable, according to ODOT.
The Ohio Department of Transportation is seeking public comments on the project. People can send feedback by May 31 to Tricia Bishop at 937-497-6721 or at Tricia.Bishop@dot.ohio.gov.
Improvements to pedestrian access will include:
- New sidewalk on the west side of Bechtle Avenue, from the traffic signal intersection at the Lowes/Best Buy entrance to the traffic signal intersection at the Wal-Mart Supercenter.
- New sidewalk on the east side of Bechtle Avenue, from the traffic signal intersection at Hillcrest Avenue to the traffic signal intersection at the Wal-Mart Supercenter.
- New sidewalk on the north/east sides of Hillcrest Avenue, from Bechtle Avenue to the south entrance to Meijer.
- 5-foot or greater buffer for most of the corridor. This buffer will be a mix of traditional curb/lawn and vegetated filter strips for stormwater treatment.
- Crosswalk markings and pedestrian signal heads at the traffic signal intersections.
- Traffic on Bechtle Avenue and Hillcrest Avenue will be maintained during the work, although lane closures and shifts may be required to protect workers and the public. Tree removals will be limited to isolated landscaping trees.
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