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State, hospital officials break ground on Boardman road work near St. E's Boardman campus
By ROBERT CONNELLY
BOARDMAN
State and hospital officials joined Tuesday afternoon to break ground on a road-widening project near St. Elizabeth Boardman Hospital.
“This project is a real collaborative effort of the various governmental agencies working with the private sector for a common goal,” said Jim Kinnick, Ohio Department of Transportation District 4 planning and engineering administrator. “Just 18 short months ago, we sat in Tom Humphries’ office. He recognized the problem” at McClurg and Market streets “and brought it to our attention.”
Humphries, president and chief executive officer of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, also spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony for the $700,000 widening of McClurg at Market. “The traffic volume out here has really been a challenge,” he said. “Thanks to [Kinnick’s] creativity to put the money together to make this happen and get this done. I think everyone in Boardman is going to appreciate the work they have done.”
Humphries also pointed to St. Elizabeth’s funding a turn lane into its campus entrance on Market Street as an improvement.
The work will include adding one lane to McClurg Road, which will provide a two-way left-turn lane for motorists; a new traffic signal for the McClurg/Market intersection; drainage improvements; and a pedestrian crossing at Tod Avenue and McClurg Road for the hospital’s auxiliary parking lot.
R.T. Vernal Paving Co. Inc. of North Lima is the main contractor for the job.
Eastgate Regional Council of Governments secured $350,000 of the total $700,000 project, while $100,000 came from a grant through an Ohio Jobs and Commerce grant. St. Elizabeth’s kicked in $275,000, and ODOT provided $100,000. Kinnick explained that totals more than $700,000 due to moving utilities and other prep work.
Wayne Tennant is the vice president of support services at St. Elizabeth and said that the project began to be discussed more as the campus in Boardman grew. “I think it’s a project that is easily manageable, and as long as the weather holds, we’re able to get it done” by late October, he said.
ODOT officials said one lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction on McClurg Road throughout the project, and occasionally it will be reduced to one lane with flaggers.