“We should be the ideal model for this (grant funding) because it’s all about reconnecting neighborhoods that had been divided by infrastructure,” said Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein. “We’ve got a really strong application.”
Dayton leaders recently approved a resolution in support of the city’s application for $8.5 million in federal funding from the Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods grant program.
The grant program has made more than $3 billion available to fund projects that address the impacts of transportation infrastructure on community mobility.
U.S. 35 at Abbey Avenue has eight lanes and is 138 feet wide. The roadway has a speed limit of 50 mph.
City officials hope the bridge will be a “gateway feature.” There’s no design yet and input from the public will be sought, but the city hopes to include “beautiful aesthetics” that tell the history of the area.
City officials and community members have said the street-level crossing at that intersection is very dangerous but pedestrians do it anyway to get to the West Branch Library, located at 300 Abbey Ave.
Last year, the city estimated that only about 10 pedestrians cross that intersection each day.
Credit: Jim Noelker
Credit: Jim Noelker
But city officials expect that foot traffic will increase as the 54-acre former Delphi plant property is transformed into new uses.
Some residents who live south of U.S. 35 told this newspaper that they would walk to the nearby West Branch Library if the crossing wasn’t so scary and dangerous.
When U.S. 35 was constructed in the mid-1980s, the highway basically split West Dayton in half, which made it challenging for residents to travel between the northern and southern parts of the community, according to the city’s project summary.
The Wright factory site is a much-needed amenity and asset in a long-neglected part of the community and a pedestrian bridge would help catalyze the rebirth of this important site, the city said.
Over the summer, the city helped launch a new free shuttle service called the West Branch Express to give community members a way to get to the library without crossing U.S. 35 on foot.
The service runs during the week from 2 p.m. to 5:45 p.m., and from noon to about 3:45 p.m. on the weekend.
The city is in the process of adjusting the route to add additional stops to the current five. The route is meant to benefit residents in the Pineview, Lakeview, Miami Chapel, Madden Hills and Edgemont neighborhoods.
City officials said Saturday has been the busiest day for the shuttle, which has topped out at about a dozen riders a day. Ridership has slowed with students back in school.
City officials said the bus service is a temporary solution until a pedestrian bridge can be installed.
“Fingers-crossed, we’ll be able to get $8.5 million and will be able to start work thereafter,” Dickstein said.
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