MOUNT VERNON — If all goes well, a new operations center, maintenance facility, and vehicle storage area might be on the horizon for Knox Area Transit.
KAT is applying for a grant through the Ohio Department of Transportation to build an operations center at 503 W. High St. and a maintenance facility and vehicle storage at 601 W. Chestnut St. The West Chestnut property would be 1.5 to 2 acres.
KAT has outgrown its current 9,500-square-foot building on Columbus Road. KAT Director Martin McAvoy and the county commissioners have been looking for a new location for awhile.
“We had been waiting on ODOT for a long time to see what kind of money they would be able to provide,” Commissioner Bill Pursel said. “To use these funds, we had to put together a plan.”
“ODOT is looking for shovel-ready plans,” County Administrator Jason Booth said. “We feel we have a spot, and we have preliminary design work done. We hope to at least have some preliminary designs, even if it is just rough sketches, so we can show the community this is what it would look like. ODOT knows that, too, and that makes it even more ‘shovel ready.’”
503 W. High St. is the site of the former Sport N Shoes and Team Sports. The Knox County Land Bank bought the property in June 2021 for $500,000 and plans to raze the existing building using state demolition money.
The land bank is also buying the .41-acre parcel on the corner of North Norton and West Chestnut streets. The parcel includes 7 N. Norton St., formerly the site of Bee Line Service, and 9 N. Norton St., former site for Terrifi-Kleen.
Sam Filkins, vice president of the land bank, said the land bank will close on the property on Jan. 30. The two existing structures will also be demolished using state money.
The Norton Street and West High Street parcels will be combined into one larger parcel as the site for KAT’s operations center. Booth said the location is attractive because it is a central location for the public and it has walkability.
“We don’t have that now,” he said. “The ops center on West High Street, that is where the public could walk to. We are looking at a fixed-route system and maybe less of on-demand service, although we would still offer that. The primary stop, the transfer point, could be on West High. We don’t have all of that ironed out yet.
“With some of the things going on at Cooper Progress Park, we’re excited about the walkability,” he added.
Pursel said the commissioners are aware that the ops center would be highly visible to those entering the community and said the building will fit into the concept of what is appropriate as a gateway to the city.
“It will be a welcoming site,” he said.
“We’ll maybe try to bring some of the design elements of the B&O depot into the ops center,” Booth said.
“And maybe blend in elements of Cooper Progress Park,” Commissioner Teresa Bemiller added.
Filkins said the idea behind buying the West High and Norton Street parcels is to tear down existing eyesores, open up the landscape, and beautify the entrance to the city. Combining the two properties provides room to move the ops center back from the roadway and incorporate green space into the streetscape.
The garage on West Chestnut Street will include four bays, three for vehicle maintenance and one for washing the vehicles. KAT will park its vehicles under cover but not in an enclosed building.
“We are looking in the future some of our vehicles running on compressed natural gas,” Pursel said. “Part of the plan design is to have services for those vehicles.”
Booth said that a West Chestnut Street garage would also enhance KAT’s plans to serve as a hub for GoBus. KAT planned to take over GoBus’ D route between Columbus and Wooster several years ago, but COVID-19 delayed the roll-out.
“GoBus is still interested, but we don’t have a place for the buses,” Booth explained. “A garage on Chestnut Street could house the buses for GoBus. If anyone is taking GoBus, they could leave their car parked there, too.”
The ODOT grant would pay 80% of the construction cost with the county providing a 20% match. The county’s 20% could come from the sale of the Columbus Road facility. Booth estimates a total project cost between $5 million and $7 million.
The application deadline is the end of January. ODOT will notify the county by early summer if it approves the application. Booth hopes to have sketches available to the public by the end of February.
The commissioners scheduled a public hearing on the application for Thursday, Jan. 27, at 2 p.m. at 117 E. High St.
On Jan. 13, the commissioners opened bids for the Patton Road bridge replacement project. The county engineer’s estimated cost is $808,708. Seven companies submitted bids ranging from $798,699 to $1.16 million. The county engineer is reviewing the bids and will award the project at a later date.
The commissioners took the following additional actions in January:
•Approved an advertisement to bid for the Heart of Ohio Trail project. Commissioners will open bids on Jan. 25 at 10 a.m. The estimated cost to finish the bike path from North County Line Road to Huffman Road is $490,000. Estimated completion date is May.
•Scheduled a public hearing in the commissioners’ office on Thursday, Feb. 3, relating to vacating an unnamed alley running from Levering Road to Walnut Alley in Waterford. A public viewing of the alley is slated for Tuesday, Feb. 1, at 11:15 a.m.
•Approved a $90,000 contract with the Knox County Area Development Foundation for 2022
•Approved a collective bargaining agreement between the Fraternal Order of Police — Ohio Labor Council for 911 dispatchers and dispatch supervisors that reflects a 3.5%, 3%, and 2.5% raise each of the next three years, respectively.
•Approved Draw #2 for AMG Industries for $57,422 from the county’s revolving loan fund
•Adopted a 2022 non-general fund budget of $67,805,927, up from $62,058,622 in 2021. The non-general fund covers money received that goes into restricted funds, such as the senior levy money, Knox DD, and Job & Family Services.
•Scheduled a bid opening on Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 11 a.m. for interior renovations to 104 E. High St. and porch renovations to 116 and 118 E. High St.
