DOWNTOWN YOUNGSTOWN City moves forward on improving Federal St.

The project's cost estimate is $548,653.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Looking to build off the success of the Federal Street reopening, the city will move ahead with an engineering study to improve another portion of one of Youngstown's main downtown streets.
At its meeting Wednesday, city council is expected to authorize the city board of control to enter into contracts for engineering design and construction administration services for the project.
The project would improve West Federal Street from Phelps Street to Fifth Avenue.
The project's cost estimate is $548,653, with about $70,000 of it for engineering and construction administration, said Carmen S. Conglose Jr., deputy director of the city's public works department.
The project would include new curbs, sidewalks and street pavement -- that section of West Federal hasn't been paved since 1990 -- as well as adding diagonal parking, which would double the number of spots from 50 to 100 in that area, Conglose said. The project also would relocate lights from center medians to the curb area, and remove most, if not all, of the medians, he said.
The city completed a $2.9 million improvement project in December 2004 to the street between Phelps and Walnut streets, including removing a pedestrian walkway and opening the plaza to vehicular traffic. City officials say that project was a key component to the downtown renaissance that has seen new businesses open.
Funding sources
The city plans to use $170,082 of its federal Community Development Block Grant money for the second Federal Street project.
The city is seeking $378,570 in state Issue 2 funds for the project. The Ohio Public Works Commission's District VI Integrating Committee, consisting of officials from Mahoning and Trumbull counties and their communities, recommended to the commission in January that the West Federal Street project receive $75,000, Conglose said.
The commission typically accepts all the District VI recommendations for funding. District VI takes in Mahoning and Trumbull counties and will receive about $7.2 million for projects this year, Conglose said.
"Based on past experiences, we're confident we'll get the money in calendar year 2006," he said. "The worst-case scenario is we'll get it next summer."
The project's engineering will be done this summer in anticipation of starting the work this year, Conglose said. The project won't start until the state funding is guaranteed, he said.
Kensington project
The city also will receive full funding for another project.
The Kensington storm water improvement project between Ohio and Logan avenues on the city's North Side received the District VI committee's recommendation last month for full state Issue 2 funding.
The state commission will consider the District VI committee's recommendations and announce what projects receive funding in July.
The District VI committee recommended the city receive the full $193,354 request for Issue 2 funds for the Kensington project. The project is estimated to cost $280,224 with the city paying the $86,870 difference.
That area easily floods, and the project would take care of that problem, Conglose said.
The project would start sometime after July 1 and take four months to complete, he said.
skolnick@vindy.com