In time for the start of the new school year, the Buckwheat Road Sidewalk has been completed from Deblin Drive in the South to the Community Park entrance in the north. The contractor, R.A. Miller Construction Company, installed the 4,000 linear feet of sidewalk on time and within budget.
The project was the recipient of an award from the Ohio Department of Transportation because the sidewalk now connects Community Park, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church and School, Mulberry Elementary School, St. Mark’s Church and School and St. Mark’s Community senior housing. Sidewalk is being installed along Buckwheat Road from Deblin Drive in the south to the Community Park entrance in the north.
Projects that link the most nodes, such as schools, churches, parks, shopping, and higher density neighborhoods have the best chance of competing for grant dollars. Also, it is Miami Township’s strategy to incorporate sidewalk construction as part of roadway projects that will be started in the near future by Clermont County and the Clermont County Transportation Improvement District. This economy of scale of combining our sidewalk construction with road improvements done by other organizations will enable us to install more sidewalks at less cost.
Pedestrian connectivity will continue to be a priority for the Board of Trustees. A project to construct sidewalks along the portion of State Route 28 that was previously widened to five lanes also has been awarded a grant and is likely to be bid for construction soon. Also, new sidewalks will be incorporated with road projects that will take place in 2011 and 2012 on Business 28, Wolfpen Pleasant Hill Road near the Junior and Senior High Schools, and on Branch Hill Guinea Pike from Glen Echo to State Route 28. The Township will continue to look for opportunities for additional grants and dovetail new sidewalk construction with roadway projects in order to encourage alternative means of travel within the community.
