Concord Township residents and business owners voiced their opinions Monday about how to make to make a dangerous and congested stretch of road safer. About a handful of people attended two public meetings at the Quail Hollow Resort ballroom. They were joined by Concord Township Trustees Chris Galloway, Paul Malchesky and Connie Luhta, along with representatives from CDM Smith, a Cleveland-based engineering firm and the Lake County Engineer’s Office. At issue is alleviating traffic from the Route 44 and Auburn Road intersection by building a connector road about a mile south of Interstate 90. It would link Auburn Road, across Route 44, to Crile Road. The question now for Concord Township trustees is which option to go with. Each attendee was given a questionnaire seeking their comments about the project. There are two options regarding how to improve the intersection of Auburn and Crile roads. Galloway said the big difference between these two is realigning southbound Auburn Road on to Crile Road. — The alignment — which will cost about $1.3 million — will merge north and southbound Auburn and Crile Road traffic. However, without the alignment — which is $200,000 cheaper — motorists would have to physically turn left or right on to Auburn or Crile roads. Motorists on southbound Auburn Road will only be able to make a right turn on to northbound Route 44. For those who want to continue on Auburn Road or southbound on Route 44, they will have to take Crile Road to the connector road. Traffic headed northbound on Crile Road will only be able to turn right on to Auburn Road. A traffic signal will be installed at this intersection and signage posted to guide drivers where to go. — The three options available for the connector road include the Crile Road bypass. This means a portion of the road would be realigned to dip slightly eastward. This would allow for motorists to turn on to the connector road to access Route 44 in both directions, along with Auburn Road and Capital Parkway. Turn lanes in each direction would be added to Route 44. A traffic signal and signage in each direction would help guide drivers where to go. Galloway said this option is most desirable to Ohio Department of Transportation District 12 officials. The total cost of this option is $8.5 million, with about $4.3 million being the cost to the township. — The second option is called the “jug handle.” Motorists headed north or southbound on Crile Road would have to travel the jug handle ramp in order to access north or southbound Route 44, Auburn Road and Capitol Parkway. Turn lanes in each direction would be added to Route 44. The total cost of this option is estimated at $7.3 million, with about $3.7 million being the cost to the township. — The final option is a two-lane round-a-bout which would be built on Route 44. Galloway said north and southbound traffic would pass through it. Those wanting to exit Route 44, would have to pass through a single-lane roundabout to get to Crile Road. Galloway said both round-a-bouts will allow for a continuous flow of traffic in any direction. The total cost of this option is estimated at $7.2 million, with about $3.6 million being the cost to the township. ODOT has told Concord Township officials it does not want and will not approve a round-a-bout constructed on Route 44, but that has not stopped Luhta and Galloway from trying. Residents have 30 days to submit their comments and suggestions to Concord Township Administrator Lee Bodnar. Once that deadline has passed, Luhta and her counterparts have until Dec. 31 to choose the preferred option. “It will probably be a 2-1 vote because I am not going to vote for anything but the round-a-bout,” Luhta said. The total cost of the project is about $10 million. The township already has set aside $3 million for the project. Galloway said the funds are from previous Joint Economic Development District money, along with the township’s Capital Projects Fund which is funded through hotel taxes. Concord Township already has received a $3.2 million grant from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency and it receives about $600,000 annually in JEDD funds. Galloway said they plan on applying for more grants through ODOT. Township officials stressed that no property tax dollars will be used to pay to finance this project. Jeff Kirkner has been a Concord Township resident for three years. After attending the public meeting, he said he is “cautiously optimistic” when it comes to the connector road project. “You just have a lot of concerns about how it’s going to impact the businesses along Crile Road and Capital Parkway and is there going to be a negative impact, what’s the traffic going to be like during the construction phase,” Kirkner said, adding he likes the jug handle option. “I do believe something needs to be done. But until it’s said and done, I’m nervous.” Bill Baldwin is a longtime Concord Township resident and owns the Waffle House on Crile Road. He said traffic at the Auburn and Crile Road intersection has always been a problem. “This impacts me twice,” Baldwin said, adding he likes the round-a-bout concept. “My biggest concern was when people get off the freeway and they want to come and see us, they are going to have to take a long way to get back to the freeway. Unfortunately, there’s just no way around that and the big problem is going down Crile and trying to make a left on to Auburn, so we’ll have to have signage in front of the restaurant.” Galloway said they will be able to start bidding out the project in 2014, with construction slated to begin in 2015. Galloway said this project has been five years in the making. He said this project is meant to handle the influx of traffic going in to such places as TriPoint Medical Center, University Hospital’s Concord Health Center, along with the various businesses that call the township home.
