HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO — Hamilton County is looking for a consultant to begin a study on how to reconnect communities split by I-75. WCPO learned Thursday, months after the study was announced, that the process is now getting off the ground.
Both the federal government and local leaders have been focused on reconnecting communities split by highways like I-75 over the last few years. Locally, leaders were focused on areas including Arlington Heights, Evendale, Lincoln Heights, Lockland, Reading and Sharonville.
A grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation in April 2024 helped kickstart a study into the best ways to reconnect those communities, but Chris Schneider with the Hamilton County Planning and Development Department said there was a lot more paperwork that needed to be done before the study could actually take place.
"It just takes a little time," Schneider said. "I don't know the exact number of grants that were given as part of this Reconnected Communities, but there were a lot. And so they're working with dozens, if not more, of contracts that have to be signed. ... We got that contract signed in October, so we've been working, really since then to push things forward."
The continued disconnects for certain communities are hurting business. Nael Salah told WCPO that since an exit on I-75 at Shepherd Lane in Lincoln Heights moved, it's impacted his restaurant.
“A few years back they changed the exit for the highway and everything," Salah said. "They made it a little further away from certain businesses, which made businesses go down in gross every year.”
He said he's been cut off from potentially hungry customers and the long-term survival of his business is now in question.
The county's planning and development department is now looking for a consultant. Once that is done, officials expect to begin taking public input about problem spots in March. But for someone like Salah, that date feels too far away.
"It's too late right now, after they spent all that money to do the work," said Salah.
Watch Live:
