MANSFIELD, Ohio — Park Avenue between Home Road and the “subway” at the U.S. Route 42 split will be resurfaced starting late next week, officials said Thursday during a press conference.
Paving will be done at night, from 7 p.m. – 6 a.m., so that the least number of drivers are impacted, Mayor Tim Theaker said.
Preparation work began about two weeks ago with the lowering of manhole covers.
Paving is slated to begin near the Park Avenue West and Home Road intersection next Thursday or Friday, weather permitting, said City Engineer Bob Bianchi.
Workers will then head east from that intersection on Park Avenue until reaching the U.S. Route 42 split.
“Traffic will be maintained to a certain extent,” said Bianchi.
He said there will be some closures, especially on the narrow sections of roadway.
“The section where Park Avenue becomes narrow is east of Trimble and west of Bowman,” he said.
That’s where there will be lane closures at certain times in both directions, he said, “so at some point there may be a closure for eastbound traffic and westbound traffic will be maintained and vice versa.
“And that will happen at night only,” he said.
There will also be single lane night closures, “where traffic in both directions will be maintained, and that’ll take place between Home Road and Trimble and also between Bowman and the downtown,” he explained.
He noted that any “loud construction,” such as work that requires a jackhammer, will be done during the day so as to not disrupt nearby residents at night.
Two and a quarter inch of asphalt will be replaced as part of this $4.8 million project.
The cost also includes other resurfacing projects within the city: state Route 545 from U.S. Route 30 to Reformatory Drive (completed), state Route 13 from Chilton Avenue to U.S. Route 42 (completed) and all of state Route 39 within the city (currently in progress).
The majority of the project is funded by the Ohio Department of Transportation, with a 39 percent match from the city (about $1.8 million).
The local share is coming out of the permissive sales tax fund and the pothole tax fund, Theaker said.
Having the work completed at night instead of during the day for the Park Avenue project comes at no additional cost, Bianchi said.
“The project had night closures already in the contract. We were able to work out with the contractor at no additional cost to do the entire corridor at night,” he said.
The completion date for the project is slated for Sept. 25, Bianchi said.
