BOARDMAN Road project begins

The project will take a year and is expected to help relieve traffic congestion.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
BOARDMAN -- Work has begun on a $1.1 million project to replace a bridge and widen a busy intersection in Mill Creek Park.
Richard Marsico, Mahoning County engineer, said crews started making improvements at Shields and Sheban roads in Boardman Township. Traffic is being maintained during the project, which will be paid for with federal funds.
Plans call for a two-lane bridge on Shields Road, which crosses Mill Creek near Sheban, to be replaced with a four-lane, 120-foot-long bridge, Marsico said. He said the improvements should help relieve traffic congestion at the intersection.
The project also will include widening about 1,700 feet of Shields Road to include left turn lanes and a "drop" lane for westbound traffic on Shields to make a right turn onto Sheban, Marsico said.
The project also will include eight-foot-wide lanes on each side of Shields to accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians in the park.
There will be a new traffic signal at the intersection, which will include a pedestrian-activated crossing to assist bikers and walkers who want to cross Shields, Marsico said.
Schedule
He said Shields will remain open to traffic until May 2004, when it will be closed for the bridge replacement. Crews will work on the road and intersection improvements until then. The entire project, which will not require the closing of Sheban, is to be completed by Aug. 20, 2004.
Shook Bros. Contracting of Berlin Center is the general contractor, and Thomas Fok & amp; Associates of Austintown is the construction manager.
Marsico said $850,000 in federal bridge funding, obtained through the County Engineers Association of Ohio, will pay for the bridge work and improvements to the approach roads. He said $300,000 in federal funds will be used to pay for the intersection upgrades.
bjackson@vindy.com