CINCINNATI — A major infrastructure project on the East End is causing frustration for residents and business owners.
Greater Cincinnati Water Works (GCWW) crews are replacing a 60-inch diameter transmission main under Riverside Drive. Work began last week and is expected to continue through September.
Riverside Drive is mostly open, except for the 100-foot stretch that is being directly worked on. That means no through traffic is possible, but most businesses remain directly accessible.
Pedestrians and cyclists can still travel the entire stretch of Riverside Drive with no interruptions.
The pipe being replaced “is one of the primary mains that feeds to the west, to Eden Park, Western Hills,” said principal engineer Jon Hunseder, who described its importance as “one of the primary features of the whole water system.”
The project is intended to prevent the main from breaking, as it did a few years ago on Riverside Drive.
The work requires a 10-foot-wide by 25-foot-deep trench excavation. The equipment required for that work will shut down 100-foot-stretches of Riverside Drive from west of Collins Avenue, and move east toward Lumber Street as work progresses.
“Very loud, very noisy, very inconvenient,” Hunseder said. “It’s a busy site, which is the other reason for the road closures … It’s just not safe for the public to be driving through here.”
Despite that small area of closure, residents reached out to WCPO to say signs marking the area were causing confusion and negatively impacting business traffic.
Signs indicating that Riverside Drive is closed are placed as far as 1.5 miles ahead of the actual location where the road is closed, along Columbia Parkway to the west and Delta Avenue to the east.
Eli’s BBQ front-of-house manager Liz Nguyen said while some customers have no trouble at all, she has fielded calls from patrons who stop at the signs indicating the road is closed to through traffic.
“Last night, I had a customer who called in for an order, and she’s like ‘I can’t get through.’ And I was like ‘actually, you actually still can.’”
“They’re a little bit misleading,” Ngyuen said. “I think we should move the signs somewhere else, like further down [the road] because people can still get through where there’s businesses.”
GCWW said the signs are meant to notify trucks who use Riverside Drive, as they’re not typically permitted on Columbia Parkway. The far distance up from the actual closure is meant to ensure they don’t need to turn around in a small area.
Still, GCWW acknowledges they’re working to improve communication that the businesses remain open — and for most, directly accessible — despite the portion of the road that is closed.
“Depending on where active construction is occurring, some businesses may be accessed directly while others may require a slight detour,” a Thursday press release states.
There are signs next to the closure signs that specifically reference businesses that remain open.
The press release is welcome news to Chris Rose, managing partner at Home Court Tavern, also known as Sinners and Saints. He has been frustrated at how the communication of the signage was handled after the project was planned for two years.
“This is in the height of our season for all of us down here, and so summer is when all of us make our money,” he said. “There is a direct impact on the businesses down here.”
Even though the road directly outside of his tavern is open, traffic has nearly stopped as the street became a dead end.
Collins Avenue is closed, which connected Rose’s business to East Side traffic without patrons having to go all the way around Columbia Parkway. That detour takes an approximate additional 10 minutes.
“You’re dealing with a lot of energy towards redirecting people, and then they don’t come anyway,” he said.
Hunseder with GCWW said he hears the concerns of businesses and residents. Crews are hoping to have Collins Avenue re-opened this weekend.
That re-opening would cut the detour time for businesses significantly.
“Depending on how quickly they can restore that area, fill it back up, restore the road, and move the signs down a bit further,” Hunseder said.
On Friday, he said workers will be focused on restoration for that portion of the road.
“We’re trying to work through this as quickly as we can,” said Hunseder.
