MOUNT VERNON — Mount Vernon City council gave emergency authorization Monday night to contract with GDP Group for design services for the State Route 13 relocation project.
The project involves relocating Route 13 north from Gay Street to Phillips Drive/South Sandusky Street. The idea first surfaced in 1999 with Focus 2100 and has undergone various iterations since then.
The northbound route is from South Main Street to Gay Street to Chestnut to North Sandusky.
The official southbound route is Sandusky Street to West High to South Mulberry, then to one-way Phillips Drive around to South Main Street. Several years ago, the city opened South Sandusky to truck traffic to eliminate trucks turning onto High Street and South Mulberry.
City Engineer Brian Ball said that Sandusky Street is not set up to handle heavy truck traffic and has undergone significant repairs this year.
Relocation plans call for the widening of South Sandusky. Phillips Drive will become two-way traffic, with northbound traffic rerouted from Gay Street to Phillips and Sandusky. The curve from Phillips Drive to South Main is 30 mph; plans call for it to be reduced to 25 mph.
“By taking traffic off Gay Street, it will actually make it more efficient to come downtown and take Gay Street to Coshocton Avenue than to cut through and zig-zag over to Edgewood Road because we’ll actually create some capacity on Gay Street,” Ball said.
Gay Street will still be a connector between Route 13 and US 36 eastbound, but Ball said that most of the traffic on Gay Street is traveling Route 13. He said Route 13 traffic is projected to increase, especially in light of Intel’s location south of the city.
Ball said rerouting northbound traffic from Gay Street to Phillips/Sandusky reduces the number of crash-point intersections and is significantly safer. It also reduces the number of lane miles for Route 13 and eliminates westbound Route 229 and US 36 traffic from Public Square.
The city is asking the Ohio Department of Transportation for significant funding for the project and has in hand $260,000 in federal money. The city also has applied for other grants for the multi-year project.
“We feel like we need to get in now because there is a big pot of money for Intel, and everybody is trying to get that money,” Ball said.
Council also approved as an emergency a contract with United Aggregates for relocating lime material from a temporary storage site on Old Delaware Road. The contract is not to exceed $75,000.
The city initially set aside $750,000 for relocating the lime material from the lagoon to beneficial use sites. City Auditor Terry Scott said that cost will come in about $100,000 less than anticipated.
The $75,000 will come out of the $100,000 and will cover the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency’s order to remove 7,500 cubic yards of lime material from the temporary storage site by Dec. 31.
Safety-service Director Richard Dzik said United Aggregates has hauled approximately 5,000 tons to beneficial use sites thus far at $7 a ton. The cost to haul the lime material to a landfill will be significantly higher.
“We anticipate meeting the EPA’s request to remove the material despite the fact that we disagree with that request,” he said.
Dzik estimated a $300,000 cost to remove the remaining material in 2023 per the EPA’s order. He also said that in terms of budgeting, he believes it is unrealistic to expect all of it will be removed by next year.
Public participation
Council members heard from Knox DD Superintendent Steve Oster and Jocelyn about October being National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Local employers employ over 100 individuals with disabilities. Sites include health care, education, manufacturing, entertainment, and skilled trades.
Mount Vernon resident Don Carr spoke about a resolution that would use $2,000 of general fund money for workforce development. The idea is to provide employee recognition activities such as an appreciation lunch or dinner and attendance awards, among other ideas.
“I join all of you in praising the work that our city employees do,” he told council. “Every encounter I have had with city workers has been pleasant and beneficial.”
However, he suggested there are other ways the city can show its appreciation, including designating an Ohio Public Service Recognition Week, a hand-written note of thanks, or a “Wall of Fame” featuring different employees each month.
Council gave the resolution a second reading. Other legislative action included:
•Approving participation in Sourcewell, a program that allows the city to eliminate competitive bidding and buy items from an approved vendor list. The vendors have already gone through the bidding process with Sourcewell.
•Approving as an emergency the appointment of Jessi Busenberg to the Utilities Commission and Emily Vonck to the Recreation Board
•Giving a first reading to the appointment of Samantha Ramsier to the Local Board of Tax Review
•Authorizing supplemental appropriations and fund transfers
•Passing ordinances on third reading updating the city’s codes and fixing the number of hourly employees in the water/wastewater/public works/engineering departments
•Approved as an emergency hourly pay rates of $11 for two Kenyon interns in the engineering department. The interns will help document the history of buildings around City Hall and serve as liaison with the public regarding the proposed new courthouse complex. The 2023-24 rate will increase to $11.50 per hour.
•Giving a second reading to the rezoning of a Newark Road parcel from neighborhood commercial to Planned Neighborhood Development. Council will hold a public hearing on Oct. 24 at 6:45.
In a Parks and Recreation Committee meeting, Downtown Manager Anthony McNeal gave an update after one year of downtown merchants hosting DORA events.
