Swanton street fix-up part of $357K project
5/12/2004SWANTON - A portion of East Garfield Street in Swanton is being rebuilt as part of a $357,000 project.
The narrow street is being widened and repaved. New curbs and sidewalks will be installed, said Jon Gochenour, village administrator. The improvement area runs three or four blocks on East Garfield between Main Street and Clark Street, he said.
Swanton received some outside funding to help pay for the upgrades that include installation of a water line and new storm and sanitary sewers, he said. "We're rebuilding the entire portion," he said.
The village was awarded a $135,000 grant from the state and got a $15,000, 20-year loan at 0 percent interest from the state, he said. Also, the community got $81,000 from the Fulton County board of commissioners toward the project cost, the administrator said. The village is paying the balance of the cost.
Mayor Tandy Grubbs said the project has many benefits, the most noticeable being improved safety. East Garfield will be several feet wider than before, he said, providing additional room for people who travel that street. "Many children walk and ride bikes in the street and two cars can hardly pass by each other."
Also, the sewer separation work will satisfy Ohio EPA requirements, and the improvements should eliminate backup problems that occurred, he said.
Widening will take the street from 18 feet to 24 feet, he said, which will bring the roadway up to the standard width.
Construction began the last week in April and should be completed by June 15.
Improvement work on another road project began last week. Crews are resurfacing Munson Road from Airport Highway to the railroad tracks. The cost for the project is $107,000. The village received a $66,000 grant from the state for the work, said Mr. Gochenour.
Repaving work should be done before Memorial Day, he said.