By Dedra Cordle
Staff Writer
Motorists accessing Hiner Road will soon have a smoother drive.
At the Jan. 21 Jackson Township Board of Trustees meeting, administrator Shane Farnsworth announced that the township has received a grant to fund improvements to the residential road.
According to the administrator, the Ohio Public Works Commission has awarded $200,700 for the road resurfacing project with a local match from Jackson and Scioto townships.
“The $98,000 will be divided evenly between (these two townships),” Farnsworth said.
Jackson Township has jurisdiction over a majority of the 1.5-mile stretch that will be resurfaced and will thus repay the interest on a minor loan.
With the grant funding approved, the project will go out to bid. Farnsworth said he expects the work on Hiner Road to begin and end this summer. He said he did not foresee road closures, only traffic monitors directing traffic when necessary.
Last year, when the board approved the grant application for the project, minor repair work had already been approved for Hiner Road. Farnsworth said the road department completed culvert and drainage work and sealed up a section of road that had sunk.
He said he is pleased that the “patchwork quilt” of a road will soon be “nice, smooth and clean.”
In related news, a traffic study on Dyer Road is being conducted by the Franklin County Engineer’s Office. Farnsworth said it is a continuation of a study prepared in 2017.
Depending on the results of the study, the township and the city of Columbus will be asked to approve a resolution of support for lowering the speed to 40 miles per hour. It would go before the county commissioners should they do so.
During a caucus session, board member Dave Burris asked if the county would consider lowering the speed on the residential road to 35 miles per hour.
Farnsworth said that is not likely as the last traffic study determined the average speed was 42.5 miles per hour. He said the study will be completed within 30 days and the entire hearing process within six months.
Additionally, the board approved an amendment to current nuisance regulations. It will allow the township to act swiftly as it pertains to nuisance cases.
Farnsworth said homeowners will be notified via mail and then asked to come to a public hearing should the matter continue to be unresolved. Rather than take the case to environmental court and go through the court process, the township will be able to remove the nuisance or junk items.
