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Upper Arlington details 2025 CIP work, including Redding Road road diet and hydrant replacements
Summary
City staff told council on March 3 that multiple 2025 capital projects are moving into design or construction, including a Redding Road lane reduction with bike lanes, a crosswalk enhancement program, waterline replacements and a new hydrant-replacement schedule tied to fire-department flushing this spring.
Upper Arlington officials presented a wide-ranging 2025 capital improvement program update at the City Council meeting on March 3, outlining planned street, sidewalk, waterline and utility work and timetables for bids and construction.
City Engineer Scott said the year’s most visible street project will be Redding Road, which runs from Fisher Road to Zollinger Road. “This is going to be pretty cool when it’s completed,” Scott said, describing plans to convert the corridor from four travel lanes to two, add parking on the east side, and install bike lanes in both directions, curb bump-outs and enhanced crosswalks. Bids were received the previous Monday, and Scott said a contract is expected to be before council on March 10 for award.
Staff also outlined routine and reconstruction work. The street maintenance (mill-and-overlay) contract bid also arrived the prior Monday and was scheduled for award in March. The street reconstruction program — full-depth rebuilding including curbs and approaches — will include Carriage Hill after it had been alternated into this year’s base bid; staff expects to bring reconstruction contracts back to council in April.
Scott described a crosswalk-enhancement program that targets 13 locations, mostly near parks and schools. The work will include high-visibility striping and, at most locations, flashing beacons. Staff said grant funding was applied for and a decision on that application is expected later in March; grant conditions could affect design timing.
Water infrastructure is a co-priority. Design is nearly complete for waterline replacement on Fairlington, Chester and Neyland; staff is incorporating recently issued federal requirements into final plans. A separate Lear Road segment showing repeated breaks will be designed this year and programmed for construction in the next year’s CIP after recent break history prompted reconsideration of its prior exclusion from the 10-year plan.
The Sustainable Sewer Solution Program — a sanitary sewer lining effort around the Fancyburg Park area — remains underway to address inflow and infiltration and satisfy an EPA mandate; staff estimated two to three years of remaining work. Scott said the program typically uses cured-in-place lining methods to minimize excavation in backyards.
Staff described a new hydrant-replacement program to address a large number of fire hydrants for which replacement parts are no longer available. Scott said the program is driven by the fire department’s annual hydrant flushing in April; that flushing will identify nonfunctioning hydrants and determine priorities for this year’s planned replacements. The city’s initial target is roughly 25 hydrants this year, with locations to be refined after the April inspections. Scott said crews will, where feasible, cannibalize parts from replaced hydrants to extend life on others.
Other items included: a streetlight replacement project (design stage) where repair was not feasible; sidewalk gap work prioritized by council (examples: a short connector near Thompson Park and two small gaps connecting Fishinger Road to McCoy); the annual sidewalk maintenance program (year two of a second five-year cycle); and the Riverside Drive shared-use path, a multiuse trail from Lane Avenue to Treby Road that ties into Franklin County’s Tribute Road Bridge work and received $750,000 in state capital grant funding.
Scott warned council that staff is closely monitoring construction pricing and lead times given market uncertainty and the potential for tariffs. “I just kind of fair warning that as we look at anything construction related, I think we’ve just got to be prepared that pricing’s going to get a little crazy for a little bit,” he said.
Council members pressed staff on sequencing and contingencies for waterline and hydrant projects and asked how prioritization would proceed if more locations require attention than the year’s budget allows. Scott said staff would coordinate prioritization with the fire department and public works and could return to council to request additional funds if needed.
Ending: Staff said most of the projects will return to council for contract award as bids are received; waterline and hydrant locations will be refined after April inspections and final design work, and grant decisions may change schedules for some crosswalk and pathway work.
