Crain Avenue Street, Driveway Aprons Getting Facelift

Avoiding Crain Avenue in Kent for the next six to eight weeks is probably the best bet for motorists as the street gets its first major facelift in at least 20 years.

Orange barrels are lined up along both sides of Crain Avenue from North Willow Street east to its dead end at Elmwood Drive. Those barrels represent the start of a two-part project that will take a minimum of six weeks to complete at a combined cost of at least $215,000.

Pat Homan, in the city’s engineering division, said the work under way on Crain is part of the city’s annual concrete repair program. Existing concrete driveway aprons, curbing and sections of sidewalk that have been deemed substandard by the city are being removed and replaced.

An ordinance approved in late 2002 requires driveway aprons to be “hard surfaced,” meaning Crain Avenue property owners whose driveways are dirt or gravel must now have concrete aprons poured.

The cost of the work is the property owner’s responsibility, according to city law. However, Homan said the city gives a 50 percent discount for work required to be done at single-family, owner-occupied properties.

Pedestrian crosswalks along Crain are also getting an upgrade to meet standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act. The new ramps will include nonslip surfaces inset in the concrete.

All concrete work is being done by the Vito Gironda Construction Co. of Akron, the low bidder for the city’s annual concrete repair program, which also includes sections of Burr Oak Drive, Park Avenue, Columbus, East Oak, Williams and Valleyview streets.

Homan said the construction company will likely finish its work on Crain Avenue by the end of this week, weather permitting, then move on to Burr Oak. The Crain portion of the city's 2011 concrete program is about $25,000 to $30,000.

Once the concrete work is done, the Chagrin Valley Paving Co. will move in to start the resurfacing work. Homan said the Chagrin Falls-based firm was the low bidder at $185,000. Nearly $150,000 of that cost is being paid for by federal money administered through the Akron Metropolitan Area Transportation Study.

Chagrin Valley Paving will mill three inches off the existing asphalt pavement on Crain and then resurface the roadway with three inches of surface course asphalt. Homan said the company also will do some minor utility structural work, such as adjusting manholes to grade and replacing metal manhole castings that are in poor condition.

Weather permitting, the resurfacing project should begin the week of July 11. Homan said the earliest it will be done is mid-August.

There will likely be a one-day road closure of four to six hours when the contractor lays down the rubberized asphalt surface course, as the hot asphalt would be damaged by traffic. Homan said the city will issue a press release at least 48 hours in advance of the closure so Crain area residents have ample warning.

Otherwise, the Crain Avenue resurfacing job will be done using a “moving construction zone,” which will allow one lane of the road to remain open.

“From now until at least mid-August motorists can expect to have potential delays, as we will have equipment spread up and down the road. It’s better for everybody to use an alternate route until the work is completed,” Homan said.