AKRON, Ohio – The repaved section of Main Street in downtown Akron, between Cedar and Mill streets, reopened to two-way traffic this week, and includes an outdoor area designated for drinking alcohol.
The city announced the first phase of the Main Street reconstruction project is mostly finished, with the final touches scheduled to be completed in weeks, including reopening pedestrian access on the west side of Main Street and installing lighting, signs and landscaping. Mayor Dan Horrigan is set to hold a live-streamed ribbon-cutting event on Oct. 15.
Akron has also opened its downtown “designated outdoor refreshment area,” or DORA, on the 100-200 block of Main Street, near Lock 3 and the Akron Civic Theatre. Inside the DORA district, people can buy “to-go” alcoholic beverages from permitted establishments and drink them outside, the city said.
“Completing primary road work and reopening two-way traffic throughout Main Street is an incredibly important milestone in this project,” Horrigan said in a statement. “Thanks to the investments we’ve made, the heart of downtown is now safer, more accessible, more beautiful and more livable. In the coming weeks, I’m thrilled to invite visitors, workers and residents alike to come and see the transformation for themselves.”
The $31 million “Phase 1” project began in July 2018 and included repaving, installing traffic signals, creating a roundabout at Main and Mill streets and improving underground utilities.
A 12-foot-tall statue of a rubber worker by sculptor Alan Cottrill will be installed at the center of the roundabout. The statue was paid for by the city, Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro’s office, Huntington Bank, PNC, FirstEnergy, Akron Children’s Hospital and the GPD Group.
Sculptor Alan Cottrill's 12-foot-tall bronze statue of a rubber worker hand wrapping a tire is set for installation in the Main Street roundabout in downtown Akron later this fall. (Courtesy of the City of Akron)
To provide historical context about the statue and Akron’s rubber history, resident Miriam Ray and the Art x Love arts collective organized the “Rubber Worker Stories Project.” Across from the statue will be a plaza paved with commemorative bricks dedicated to Akron’s rubber workers, and will include a kiosk for visitors to view and listen to archival footage and oral histories about the history of the Rubber City.
But more Main Street construction is on the way, with the second phase of the project on track to break ground later this month.
The $16.6 million “Phase 2,” from Mill Street to Ohio 59, is set to include turn lanes at Market Street and Ohio 59; a lane on each side of the street for parallel parking, short term deliveries or buses; a continuation of a bike path connecting to the Towpath Trail; new sidewalks and crosswalks, including one near the main library; LED lighting; utility upgrades; and improvements to aesthetics and amenities, including space for sidewalk cafes, the city said.
Construction on the sidewalks is slated to begin this year, with work on the roadway scheduled for near year and expected to wrap up in 2022. The contractor is Stow-based Karvo Companies.
The city said it plans to hold a public meeting to solicit feedback about Phase 2, but has not finalized details.