Mansfield Avenue project nears completion with new stormwater system and shared-use path

The disruptions will ultimately be well worth it.

Mansfield Avenue, on the north side of the city, remains a construction zone and will be one until the end of this year, but the improvements being made to that thoroughfare are already showing benefits, with more to come.

Work is now under way along the road to install a shared-use path, or SUP, which will ensure that students have a safe way to walk to and from Dan Emmett Elementary School. There were previously no sidewalks along Mansfield Avenue above Belmont Avenue. The work is scheduled to be finished by the end of this year.

Before construction could begin on the SUP, however, the underground infrastructure had to be replaced and upgraded. As the accompanying photographs clearly show, the existing stormwater system that had been under Mansfield Avenue for decades had more than reached the end of its useful life.

These old pipes, mainly made of steel, had completely failed and were likely contributing to increased inflow and infiltration into the city’s sanitary sewers, in addition to creating elevated groundwater conditions that were reducing the service life of the street above ground.

Water had been seeping into residents’ basements because of the failed pipes, a scenario that was rectified when the city had 4,894 feet – nearly a mile – of new double-wall HDPE (high-density polyethylene) pipes laid down earlier this year to carry and redirect stormwater.

With the below-ground improvements completed, work has now begun on the shared-use path, which will start at the north side of Belmont Avenue on the eastern side of Mansfield Avenue and continue north to Fairgrounds Road, where a crosswalk will be installed with flashing beacons so pedestrians can cross the road there safely. The SUP will then continue on the western side of Mansfield Avenue up to Grange Avenue.

The SUP will generally be from eight to 10 feet wide, with a five-foot-side stretch from Belmont Avenue to Nash Street on the west side of Mansfield Avenue. While giving kids a path to use on school days is the SUP’s primary purpose, the path, which will be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), can also be used for outdoor recreation and as an option for alternative forms of transportation.

Along with the construction of the path, the stormwater system in the area is also being improved with new curb, gutter and storm drains, along with the new stormwater lines. The process of fixing and putting in new grass will extend into next spring.

“We have to take the long view when it comes to municipal improvements,” said Mayor Matthew Starr. “This year’s work along Mansfield Avenue has been inconvenient, but getting water out of those residents’ basements, giving their kids a safer route to school, all while taking advantage of the availability of state and federal funding for this major project, will bring benefits to that part of town for decades to come.”

The cost of the entire project is $3.4 million, broken down as follows:

• Federal funds: $1.2 million

• Ohio Department of Transportation: $1.5 million

• City stormwater funds: $293,517

• Toll Revenue Credit: $236,842

• City capital improvement fund: $70,345

• City water funds: $48,200