Plans have been in work since 2017 to improve downtown Westerville and make its sidewalks and crossings ADA compliant. The city council was recently briefed on the latest plans, which should allow the work to proceed.
Among other work, the project would replace pedestrian crossing and sidewalks, and improve mobility by adding ‘bump-outs’ at pedestrian crosswalks to meet the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Staffers first presented three different versions of the plan that varied in scope and cost. However, none was completely acceptable to business owners in the Uptown area, who were especially concerned about losing street parking.
Earlier this year, the city and business owners reached a compromise. The project would have a budget of $3.3 million, leave parking intact, and would be finished in a relatively short time. Officials dealing with measures like this could use flyer printing to keep residents informed.
With the compromise in place, the city is finalizing plans on how and when to begin the changes. Early this month, the city engineer, Scott Tourville, told the city council Westerville officials have already talked to design consultants and discussed plans.
To help speed matters up, the city is likely to allow the company that wins the bid to work 19-hour days, starting at about 9:00 pm and winding up the next day at 4:00 pm. If that scheduled is adopted, it is expected the work could be finished in about 29 weeks from its inception, with final completion in May 2020.
