Saying that an upcoming, hour-long meeting the Ohio Department of Transportation plans to hold online won’t be enough time to fully receive the likely volume of public comments, a Toledo city councilman has announced a separate community meeting -- in-person, but outdoors -- to discuss a state feasibility study about widening I-475 between Douglas Road and U.S. 23.
“They sent out a handful of letters to those immediately nearby the project, and invited the public to a 1-hour Zoom meeting on August 12th,” Sam Melden, through whose Council District 5 the West Toledo portion of I-475 passes, wrote to announce the gathering Monday in Lincolnshire Park.
“While we encourage everyone to participate in that meeting, we also know that a single 1-hour Zoom meeting is not nearly enough to fully engage the many neighbors who care to speak up about this proposal,” Mr. Melden wrote.
A separate flyer promoting the meeting with a decidedly anti-widening tone said coronavirus precautions will be taken during the meeting, including requiring those in attendance to wear face masks and maintain 6 feet of separation from non-relatives.
The meeting is scheduled to start at 7 p.m., and in case of rain will be held Thursday evening instead of Monday evening, Mr. Melden wrote.
ODOT issued a statement Tuesday about the Aug. 12 meeting, to be held online from 4 to 5 p.m. for a presentation and discussion about its feasibility study describing alternatives for widening the freeway, which currently has two lanes each way between Douglas and U.S. 23, and adding ramps to convert the current half-interchange at Talmadge Road into a full interchange.
“More detailed studies and design will follow later. There is no construction date or funding currently available for the alternatives that will be discussed during this meeting,” ODOT said in its announcement, which cited unspecified “safety and congestion concerns” as the reason the freeway’s widening is under consideration.
Online access to ODOT’s meeting will be available at https://www.transportation.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odot/projects/projects/108778. People can also join in by calling 855-925-2801 and using access code 9300.
ODOT currently is widening I-475/U.S. 23 from four lanes to six between Bancroft Street and Angola Road along and near the Toledo-Springfield Township border, and has a project planned to extend the additional lanes to U.S. 24 in Maumee. I-475 was widened between Douglas and the I-75 “Jeep Split” starting in 2010.
First Published July 29, 2020, 2:14 a.m.
