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Salem council authorizes rail-overpass grant application, commits $250,000 local match
Summary
On Feb. 3, Salem City Council authorized applying for a federal-state rail grant to build an overpass on South Lincoln Avenue and committed a $250,000 local match (half of a $500,000 local match). Council members said the project addresses safety and traffic disruption caused by about 60 train crossings a day.
Salem City Council voted unanimously Feb. 3 to authorize submission of an application and to commit a local-match contribution in support of a federal-state grant program for a proposed overpass on South Lincoln Avenue.
Safety service director Joe Capazello told council the application for the National Railroad Partnership Program is due Friday and that the project has support from multiple levels of government. "This previous council has already showed support for this. This is a tremendous opportunity that's been in the works for many, many years," he said, and provided the council with a short synopsis of the proposal.
Capazello said the proposed local match totals $500,000, with Columbiana County commissioners committing $250,000 and the city of Salem committing $250,000. He said the total project is currently estimated at about $27 million, and that "Governor DeWine has committed over $5 million" while federal support would cover roughly $21 million if the application and subsequent approvals proceed as hoped. He cautioned that large infrastructure projects rarely proceed perfectly but estimated, in the best-case scenario, a shovel-in-the-ground date of January 2032.
Council members described safety and emergency-response access as key reasons for supporting the project. "The crossing has been identified as a dangerous crossing by the state and railroad transportation department due to the number of trains and also traffic including buses and ambulances," said Mr. Ty, who moved to suspend the rules and advance the ordinance. Mr. Harrington, who said he was not involved in bringing the project forward originally, called it "a very important project for our city" and said it could help with economic development and site selection.
The ordinance was read for first, second and third readings with an emergency clause and passed by unanimous roll call vote.
Next steps: the clerk will file the grant application before the stated deadline, and council officials said they will continue coordination with county and state partners as the application proceeds through review and potential federal hearings.
