TRUMBULL COUNTY Financial constraints prompt city to consider delaying road project

Girard doesn't have $200,000 to continue the U.S. Route 422 project, the mayor says.
By TIM YOVICH
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
GIRARD -- The second leg of the State Street road improvement project will probably be delayed by the city's financial condition, Mayor James J. Melfi says.
The second phase of the project would improve the 1.2 miles of road from Interstate 80 to the Girard-Youngstown city limits.
The Ohio Department of Transportation has completed the first phase of widening State Street (U.S. Route 422) with a cost of $5.4 million. ODOT warned Friday that there will continue to be short-term lane restrictions as the work wraps up.
The project has turned State Street into a four-lane highway from Interstate 80 north to Weathersfield Township.
The second phase of the upgrade won't be as extensive as the first. State Street has been widened between I-80 and Weathersfield, in addition to new curbing and sidewalks. The second phase calls for widening only where there is a curve in the road in the area of Kay Lanes.
However, ODOT has told the mayor that if the project is done within 18 months, the city will have to come up with $200,000, 20 percent of the cost.
"That's impossible," Melfi said of coming up with the city's share.
Fiscal emergency
The city is in state-imposed fiscal emergency and has an accumulated general fund deficit of $1.6 million.
In addition, there is a waterline relocation that will cost the city between $25,000 and $30,000.
Melfi said that since State Street was resurfaced in 1999 and the road surface remains in good condition, the city must pay the 20 percent rather than ODOT paying nearly the entire cost. If the city waits an additional 18 months, ODOT will pay nearly all of the cost when the surface is older.
"My recommendation to [city] council is wait the 18 months," the mayor said Friday.
Jennifer Richmond, an ODOT spokeswoman, said that as time goes by and the surface wears, the city might qualify for urban paving funds. ODOT should know early next year if the city qualifies.
Such funds can only be used for resurfacing and not for curbs and sidewalks. Other funding sources would be used for curbs and sidewalks, Richmond explained.
Meanwhile, ODOT will be looking to determine if the city might qualify for other funds to reduce the cost to the city.
State Street may be an alternate route to the state Route 711 Connector. If so, Melfi explained, the 20 percent local share can be waived.
yovich@vindy.com