State Road Widening Project One Step Closer to Breaking Ground

After five years of planning, the State Road widening project is just months away from getting the green light.

The $9 million project, funded, in part, by the Ohio Department of Transportation, is aimed at widening a two-mile stretch of State Road from Graham to Quick Road, relieving traffic congestion, reducing car accidents and spurring new retail development, said Cuyahoga Falls City Engineer, Tony Demasi.

Pedestrian traffic would also be increased with the addition of sidewalks and bike trails to each side of State, and two intersections at Bath and Steels Corners Roads would be modified to better circulate the flow of traffic, he said.

Since last summer, the city has been in negotiations with 81 property owners who control 97 parcels of land in the prospective construction zone.

Demasi said settlements have been reached with nearly 90 percent of the landowners whose property will be affected by the widening.

If all goes as planned, the city should get the go-ahead by ODOT this December.

On Monday night, the city’s Public and industrial Improvements Committee, which is chaired by City Councilman Jerry James, met during its regular Monday meeting at the and unanimously approved a motion for city officials to finalize the negotiations.

However, one parcel which concerns the State/Bath road intersection widening was pulled from the ordinance and will undergo further consideration.

The council will review whether or not it’s necessary to install a right-turn lane on Bath Road for motorists who want to head north on State.

Demasi said it’s necessary, yet committee members James, Terry Mader and Diana Colavecchio and Ed Hwee -- the owner of the Mandarin House restaurant which sits on the parcel in question -- argued against the additional lane.

Want to learn more regarding this ongoing construction issue, read on: