Republic file photo Columbus City Hall is shown in downtown Columbus.
City officials agreed to expand the scope of work regarding a project on Second Street that will add on-street parking and other traffic calming measures to also include the replacement of an aging water main.
Columbus Redevelopment Commission members on Tuesday approved a resolution to broaden the Second Street Thoroughfare project to add the replacement of a water main along the roadway for an amount not to exceed $3.29 million. The funding will come from the central tax increment financing (TIF) district, but will need to be backed by Columbus City Council members in a later meeting because it is an city expenditure greater than $500,000.
The commission on September 19, 2023 agreed to put forward $1.4 million in funding for the thoroughfare project, which is aimed at reducing traffic speeds along Second Street and making the area more pedestrian-friendly.
Plans for the project include narrower lanes, bump outs, additional landscaping, improved pedestrian crossings, on-street parking, improved drainage, new curbs and new ramps that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Dave O’Mara Contractors is who will be doing the work.
City Engineer Andrew Beckort told commission members that as work was set to start they realized the water main needed to be replaced and city officials thought it prudent to combine the two projects. Rather than doing the corridor project and then the water main a couple of months after, Beckort said enacting “one continuous closure” would “help make this project a little smoother for the community.”
Time is of the essence as well— Beckort said the state is planning to do a full pavement replacement project on Second and Third streets in fiscal year 2027 so the city wants to finish their own work to Second Street prior to then.
The plan is for Dave O’Mara Contractors to replace the water main too, according to Beckort.
