Dayton has made steps to clear the way for construction to continue on phase two of the Riverfront Commons River’s Edge Trail project.
At their December council meeting, Dayton city officials approved an order authorizing Mayor Ben Baker to enter into an easement and cost-sharing agreement with Sanitation District 1, the agency responsible for the region’s sewage and water sanitation services known as SD1, which will start the construction process on the project’s next phase.
A project of the economic development nonprofit Southbank Partners, Riverfront Commons is a public multi-use path designed to provide a pedestrian, bike and other “non-vehicle” transportation route along the riverfront. Once completed, it will connect seven communities along the south bank of the Ohio River.
The agreement with the sanitation district helps cover additional costs needed to accommodate SD1 truck access to sewer infrastructure in the trail corridor.
“The background on this is we are in the process of getting ready to bid out Phase II of the River Commons Trail and phase three. In phase two, SD1 has an easement for maintaining infrastructure in that area,” city administrator Jay Fossett explained.
The problem, he said, is that the heavy SD1 trucks need a roadbed with six-inch thick concrete. Much of the pathway will be four inches thick. The cost of the extra concrete is an added expense, but if left too thin, the trucks would break through the concrete.
The SD1 agreement and preparation work underway is an indication that the project is moving ahead once the bids are returned. The city bid the project out earlier this year, but bids came back at approximately $1 million more than expected. At a later meeting, officials said they believed they could cut the additional costs by about half if they reworked the bid.
In October, the city received the welcome news that OKI will grant $569,000 to the city to help complete phase two. The grant enabled city officials to rebid and move ahead with plans. According to the tentative timeline, if all goes well, construction of phase two will be underway this coming spring.