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YOUNGSTOWN -- Additional sections of West Federal Street, one of the busiest downtown roads, will be closed in the coming months, but a major part of the project is delayed until next year.
Representatives of some of the venues and businesses in the path of the lengthy makeover say it's been a challenge but are optimistic the results will be worth the inconveniences.
Federal Street from Fifth Avenue to South Avenue is to be overhauled with repaving work, realignment of curbs, new crosswalks, underground lighting, wider sidewalks and changes to parking.
The section of West Federal Street from Fifth Avenue to Vindicator Square / Symphony Place has been closed to vehicular traffic for months for the work, which is part of a $27.65 million project on several downtown streets. The project received $10.85 million in federal funding.
Work on that western section of West Federal is about 70 percent complete, said Charles Shasho, the city's deputy director of public works.
Sometime next month, the section of West Federal from Vindicator Square / Symphony Place to Hazel Street will be closed to vehicles for the improvement work and then likely in July the section from Hazel Street to Phelps Street will be closed, he said.
That entire section of West Federal Street from Fifth Avenue to Phelps Street will remain closed until the fall for the final coat of paving to be done, Shasho said.
TYLER CENTER
The Tyler History Center is right in the middle of the section of West Federal Street that has been closed since January.
"In terms of visitation, it's quieter since January," said H. William Lawson, executive director of the Mahoning Valley Historical Society, which operates Tyler. "We anticipated the work starting and got information out. We haven't had any cancellations and had good attendance at our events. But we've had to improvise and adapt."
Construction work "went methodically until the beginning of April and then they picked up the pace," Lawson said.
YBI AND DEYOR
With Vindicator Square / Symphony Place to Hazel Street next on the list to be closed, businesses at the Youngstown Business Incubator as well as the DeYor Performing Arts Center will be affected.
"Of course it's an inconvenience," said Barb Ewing, YBI's CEO. "No one likes orange barrels, but we like the results of orange barrels. It's an inconvenience, but it's an inconvenience that we'll work around. The end product will be worth it."
The work that has been done to other streets as part of this project - including Fifth Avenue, Front Street, Commerce Street and South Phelps Street - has beautified the city, Ewing said.
"When people from out of town see how Youngstown reinvents itself, it's a benefit," she said. "That kind of investment will take us to the next level. I truly appreciate it."
Construction "has affected our daily business" at DeYor, said Jamie Marshall, chief strategy officer for Stambaugh Auditorium, which manages the downtown performing arts center.
"Unfortunately, it's one of those things we can't do anything about, but we know the outcome is going to be greater than what we're dealing with right now," she said. "We know the project needs to be done, and we're excited to see it completed."
The rear of DeYor faces Commerce Street, which has had sections closed for the same downtown project.
"We've dealt with this on Commerce Street for the past year," Marshall said. "We're just adapting. A lot of it is, let's make sure the patrons know where they can park and how to enter the center. It's definitely been a challenge, but we know it will be worth in it in the end."
Shasho said of the inconveniences: "I can understand it. But, in the end, we try to do what's best for the city as a whole."
POSTPONEMENT
A large portion of the Federal Street project -- from Phelps to Champion streets -- that initially was part of the work had to be postponed, Shasho said.
That's because of the discovery of several basements, including at the city-owned 20 Federal Place, that stretch into the right of way on sidewalks, he said.
The city doesn't know yet how to rectify the situation with the private businesses, Shasho said. As part of the $6,979,038 remediation and partial demolition of 20 Federal Place, the city is filling in the basement of the building under the sidewalk.
The city will redesign the project and then readvertise for the work between Phelps and Champion streets in the winter, Shasho said. The work will start next spring, he said.
That section is one the busiest in downtown, crossing Central Square and impacting both West and East Federal streets.
STARTED IN 2020
All of this work is part of the SMART2 (Strategic and Sustainable, Medical and Manufacturing, Academic and Arts, Residential and Recreation and Technology and Training) Network program that began with a $7 million improvement to Fifth Avenue between West Federal Street and Eastbound Service Road in July 2020.
A condition to get the $10.85 million grant is the work must be finished by the end of 2024.
There have been delays on every street involved in the project with work on Front and Commerce streets still not finished.
All of the work will get done by the end of next year as the city built in buffer time in the schedule, Shasho said.
dskolnick@vindy.com