MANSFIELD — The City of Mansfield Board of Control on Tuesday approved contracts totaling $4.2 million to replace or rehabilitate about 1,700 feet of a failing, century-old box culvert along East Third Street.
Shelly & Sands was awarded the construction project after submitting a low bid of $3,869,850. The control board also approved K.E. McCartney & Associates to inspect and oversee the project at an amount not to exceed $385,000.
City Council approved the construction project, estimated at $4.3 million, in September.
Click here to see a multimedia explanation of the project.
The box culvert (15 feet wide and seven to eight feet deep) is used to move storm water underground. The section in question enters on Third Street near the city’s main fire station at 140 E. Third St. The work will go east to Ashland Road.
The underground system handles Ritter’s Run in the downtown through a series of sandstone tunnels and brick arches. Bianchi said inspections found that 900 feet of the culvert in question needs to be replaced.
“It’s in disrepair,” the engineer said after the control board meeting. “It’s got steel that is exposed and rusting. It’s got through holes in the deck.
“You can actually stand on the surface of the pavement, look through the concrete and see the bottom of Ritter’s Run stream.
“The culvert was built in 1905 was repaired intermittently over time, but it’s time for a full replacement,” Bianchi said.
The city received a $500,000 grant from the Ohio Public Works Commission to help fund the project. The remainder of the work will be paid for from the city’s sewer fund.
“We’re excited that bids came in lower than the engineer’s estimate,” he said.
Three other construction bids came in higher: Elite Excavating of Mansfield ($4,364,403), Adena Corp. of Mansfield ($5,147,312) and Eclipse Co. from Chagrin Falls ($6,069,279).
“Shelly and Sands is a well established contractor and is very capable of doing this work and doing it on time,” Bianchi said in recommending the board award the contract.
He also praised the work of K.E. McCartney.
“They do great work for us when it comes to inspections. They will thoroughly inspect and make sure the project has been completed in accordance with our specifications,” the engineer said.
Bianchi said construction will likely begin in March or April of 2023 and the contractor has until June 2024 to complete the project.
The work will not address any localized flooding in the area that may occur due to storms.
“We are simply replacing a culvert in kind, essentially, based off of size and material. The hydraulics will remain the same,” Bianchi said.
When council approved the project, Bianchi said the work will complicate travel along East Third Street while it’s underway.
“When you’re driving into Third Street, you look down, it’s gonna be a mess. It’s gonna be a lot of construction, a lot of heavy equipment, a 15-foot wide culvert is gonna be placed in ground,” he said in September.
Bianchi said residents in the area will have access to their homes, though through traffic will be closed off. He said other locations, including Richland County Job & Family Services, also have access from other directions, not just Third Street.
“The contractor, as well as the city, will be working closely with JFS and Newhope Industries and anyone else along that corridor to make sure that we’re in close communication so that we don’t want to hinder their operations,” he said.
“It’s a very big project,” Bianchi told City Council. “This project has been (in development) for about a year and a half.
“We have got the final plans (from EMHT). All the property acquisitions have been done. The plans have been been fully completed.”
In response to a question from 2nd Ward Councilwoman Cheryl Meier, city fire Chief Steve Strickling said the construction would not impact the department’s response time.
“Normally we respond west on East Third and go to Adams Street and then go north or south. It’s pretty rare for us to east on Third, unless it’s to one of the few residences that are right at that general area. So it should not impact our response times adversely at all,” Strickling said.
Sidewalks and catch basins would also be replaced as part of the project, according to Bianchi, who said the road would also be repaved.
