ASHLAND — A small section of Main Street in Ashland is set to reopen by this weekend, Ashland County Engineer Ed Meixner announced.
The road has been closed since early June as Adena Corporation crewmen replace an underground bridge between Broad and Race streets.
Meixner originally said the project would be done by Aug. 31.
“We’re two weeks late,” he said Thursday, addressing county commissioners. “I apologize for the delay.”
Crews poured concrete on Aug. 22 atop the new bridge; it has been curing since then. Meixner said workers will seed and mulch the surrounding yards and install a ladder in a manhole on Thursday, followed by painting yellow stripes on Friday.
The nearly $1 million project has snarled local traffic as motorists navigate another street project along Sandusky Street. Crews from Kokosing started that project in July or August and are set to complete the job by the first of November, according to city officials.
Under budget
Mexiner said the Main Street project — which involved taking out the old bridge and installing a new one — is expected to be completed under budget. Adena bid the undertaking at $998,830, but overall will be about $55,000 under.
The road is an extension of an Ashland County road that happens to run through the city, requiring the two government entities to partner. The city, in December 2022, approved a resolution that agreed to provide the county with 15,000 tons of asphalt grindings in return for a funded project.
The county is paying for the project with $436,083 from a combination of American Rescue Plan Act allocation and gas tax funds.
Another $500,000 grant from the Ohio Public Works Commission helped toward the funding.