Meridian Road improvements wrapping up

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Motorists who frequently travel on a 5-mile stretch of Meridian Road likely will welcome a smooth corridor free of potholes and the absence of a string of orange construction cones.

“The [first] phase from Mahoning Avenue to Interstate 680 is wrapping up,” Mahoning County Engineer Patrick T. Ginnetti said after Wednesday morning county commissioners’ meeting.

That portion of an improvement project to the busy corridor, which got underway last spring, should be complete by month’s end after some minor grading work to the surface, Ginnetti noted. The $3.4 million project included road resurfacing, new storm sewers, curb upgrades and a waterline replacement.

The second, $1.6 million leg of the Meridian Road project, between Mahoning Avenue and Canfield Road (state Route 62) in Cornersburg, is scheduled to wrap up around the same time. Some patching work and adjustments to manholes are all that’s left, and mostly favorable weather predicted for the next few weeks should ensure the work will be finished by month’s end, Ginnetti continued.

The Meridian Road resurfacing effort also is a partnership between the county and the city of Youngstown. During the work, drivers experienced lane restrictions and delays but likely will be pleased with the finished work, he added.

After the project’s conclusion, the focus will turn toward making sure the county’s salt spreaders and snow plows are fully functional for the winter, Ginnetti said.