Article published October 30, 2009
Paulding County lives its dream with dedication of new U.S. 24
By DAVID PATCH
BLADE STAFF WRITER
ANTWERP, Ohio - Dave Fisher doubted he'd ever see the completion of a new U.S. 24 expressway across Paulding County near his Crane Township home.
"I knew I was going to be dead and buried before this happened," he said, the "this" being a ribbon-cutting yesterday for the highway he thought would never be built.
And the opening of new U.S. 24 between Defiance and Indiana Rt. 101 means Mr. Fisher expects to never again be "waiting for 11 semis before I can pull out" to go about his local business.
Nearly 26 miles of new roadway opened yesterday afternoon, several hours after a morning dedication at the Ohio-Indiana border featuring both states' governors, other state and local dignitaries, and scores of local people from the surrounding area who came by to witness the fulfillment of a dream that, for some, had been generations in the making.
"It's going to save a lot of lives. It's been needed for a long time," said Charles Schaefer, a farmer from nearby Payne, Ohio. On old U.S. 24, he added later, "You get behind a truck, you'd be behind it maybe all the way to Toledo."
Cecil Mayor Gene Sheets, who doubles as his village's assistant fire chief, said the new road should improve traffic flow and boost Cecil's economy.
Construction continues on a 21.6-mile segment of the new U.S. 24 expressway between Napoleon and Waterville. The segment is scheduled to open in July, 2012.
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THE BLADE/LISA DUTTON
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And while there may be a few high-speed wrecks on the expressway, he said, they should be fewer than on the old road and include few of the head-on crashes for which the two-lane version was notorious.
"It is beautiful, straight, smooth, and safe," ODOT Director Jolene Molitoris said during the ribbon-cutting. "It will be for Ohioans, it will be for business, it will be for the future."
"Some of you have fought for 40 years to stand here today and see a dream come true," said Indiana state Rep. Randy Borror (R., Fort Wayne). "Today is about saving lives and creating jobs."
Both Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland and his Indiana counterpart, Gov. Mitch Daniels, described the U.S. 24 project as a model of cooperation between the neighboring states.
"Economies do not respect the invisible lines like that one," Mr. Daniels said, pointing to the State Line Road bridge behind him as he spoke - though he had cheerfully observed moments before that the ceremony occurred on the Indiana side of the border.
"Our futures have never been more closely linked," Mr. Strickland agreed.
Hannah Schneider, 9, collected a piece of the ribbon that the two governors, along with several local politicians and transportation department officials, cut to ceremonially open the road. It'll be a keepsake she can show future generations and say she was there when the highway opened.
"I'm going to put it in my room," Hannah said.
The roadway that opened yesterday included 23 miles in Ohio and 2.9 miles in Indiana, and represents a bit less than one-third of U.S. 24's total length between an existing four-lane highway north of Waterville and the I-469 beltway around Fort Wayne.
ODOT last year completed 14 miles of construction between Napoleon and Defiance to add a two-lane westbound roadway and rebuild the former two-lane road as the eastbound lanes, but that was along an existing alignment built during the 1960s. The highway west of Defiance is on a new alignment, as will be the route between Napoleon and Waterville, now under construction.
Mike Gramza, the district construction engineer at ODOT's Bowling Green office, said the three construction contracts that make up the 21.6-mile Napoleon-Waterville section are on schedule for a July, 2012, opening. The westernmost section, for which construction began last year, is about half-finished, he said.
"It's moving along very well. We're very pleased with the progress," Mr. Gramza said.
Overall, Ohio is spending $402 million to build its 58.5 miles of new or widened highway, while Indiana's share is $170 million.
On the Indiana side, the next 3.6 miles to the west of Route 101 is under construction, while work is to start next year on the final 4.7 miles that will reach I-469. Indiana expects to complete its part of the project in 2012 too.
Though the section around his community remains to be built, Jamie Black, the secretary-treasurer of the Waterville Gas Co. and onetime co-chairman of the Fort to Port Improvement Organization, said completion of the stretch west of Defiance was a worthy milestone.
"Any movement forward is critical," he said.
"It's a dream come true," echoed Sue Westendorf, the retired director of the Napoleon-Henry County Chamber of Commerce, who co-chaired the U.S. 24 advocacy group with Mr. Black and who drove from Columbus for the ribbon-cutting yesterday.
"I was stuck behind four trucks on 24 coming over here," she said. "This is just beautiful."
And in Antwerp, yesterday was the final day - barring future emergency detours - that trucks queued up at the three traffic lights on the old road through the center of town, which will become Paulding County Road 424.
"It won't hurt my feelings a bit" when the trucks are gone, Gary Schmunk, who lives on Antwerp's main drag, said while raking leaves in a neighbor's yard. "It'll be kind of nice to not have so much traffic here."
Contact David Patch at:
dpatch@theblade.com
or 419-724-6094.
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