MANSFIELD — The official start of spring is more than a month away. It’s March 20, to be exact.
That means construction work on the $20.3 million Main Street Corridor Improvement project is nearly ready to resume, according to Brent Rossman, communications specialist for the project through Downtown Mansfield Inc.
An Oct. 31 completion date for the massive project is still on track, he said.
Work on the 18-month project began in March 2025. Heavy work halted in December for the winter, though light poles and other lighter work has continued during the winter months.
Rossman said he senses “a different sort of atmosphere” around the project these days, perhaps because the end of it, from First Street to Sixth Street, is in sight.
Rossman and city officials have said the effort is far more than a beautification or streetscape project.
It’s a complete upgrade of Main Street from First to Sixth streets and Park Avenue from Main to Diamond streets, designed by K.E. McCartney & Associates of Mansfield with Kokosing Construction as the primary contractor.
Included in 2025 was the replacement of century-old water and storm sewer lines throughout the length of the project, an effort that led to closures of Main Street in places for extended periods of time.
That work is done and work done in 2026 will be more noticeable to the public, according to Rossman.
“Much of the work done in 2025, the underground infrastructure, was probably the most complicated and disruptive phase of the project because it required digging up everything all at once,” he said.
“A lot of the work was done underground. The work this year will be much more visible to people,” Rossman said.
He admitted there was a great deal of community fatigue during the first nine or 10 months of the project. Rossman also acknowledged the project has impacted businesses along the corridor.
In January, the owners of the Coney Island Diner on Main Street announced their business was for sale, citing a loss of sales during the project as one of the reasons.
“No matter how well you prepare … no matter how far in advance people know something is going to happen … it still hurts. It’s still hard,” Rossman said.
“The end goal is more in sight and people can really visualize it now in a way you couldn’t at the outset of the project.”
(Below are photos of Main Street in downtown Mansfield taken by Richland Source reporter Katie Ellington Serrao before Winter Storm Fern dumped 10 inches of snow on Jan. 26. The story continues below the photos.)
The fifth stage of the nine stage project will begin as soon as weather permits.
The next phase between Park Avenue and Third Street, expected to take 60 days, will see:
— construction of brick crosswalks just north of North Park Street and on Park Avenue between Main and Diamond streets.
— construction of a brick and concrete intersection at Main Street and Park Avenue.
— Sidewalk construction.
— Installation of signal foundations.
— Construction of drainage improvements.
Lane closures will take place in the active work area. One lane will be maintained when possible. When Main Street is closed due to work at intersections, Mulberry Street will be used for detours.
(Below is a Main Street Corridor Improvement Project timeline, including the stages remaining in 2026.)
“I think we learned a lot from (2025) in terms of how to phase things out so that it will not be as big a disruption to people,” Rossman said.
Even when streets are closed, Rossman said officials hope people remember this is “a once in a lifetime kind of project.”
According to the city, 82 percent of the funding for the project is coming from non-local government funds, including a $7.3 million federal Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity grant secured in 2022.
Officials have said the effort will spur visitation to the downtown, promote business growth and increase economic investment in the area, while also honoring the city’s long history.
“Decades, or even a century from now, this infrastructure will still be here. Our grandkids will be walking down this street. You can’t compare it to some (simpler streetscape projects) people have seen done in other communities at a faster pace,” he said.
“This is not just a beautification project. It’s a renovation, replacement and beautification project,” Rossman said.
“We are building the bones … not just for Main Street … but downtown Mansfield and Mansfield as a whole,” he said.
(The drone video below was taken by Braxton Daniels/Studio 45 in November.)