PROJECT UPDATES … Archbold Rotarians Dexter Krueger (left), village engineer, and Aaron Alt, assistant administrator, provided an overview of capital projects in the village that will either be completed in 2024 or started at the April 26 Rotary meeting.
Three of Archbold’s capital projects are slated to be completed this year and another three projects are expected to begin, according to Aaron Alt, the assistant village administrator.
He and village engineer Dexter Krueger discussed all of those projects at the April 26 Archbold Rotary Club meeting.
The costliest project that has been completed was a sanitary sewer project that encompassed the northwest quadrant of Archbold.
The sewer had been installed in 1959 and was showing its age with the need for frequent repairs due to tree roots and cracking – all of which are typical of an aging glazed clay tile system.
However, rather than digging up the old tile and replacing it, the village opted for a system that used the existing tile and inserted a seamless PCV like liner inside the old tile.
Krueger estimated that the new system should last at least 75 years, be resistant to cracking or allowing tree roots to penetrate the liner and cost about $8 million less to complete.
Best of all, most of the $2.1 million cost was covered by a grant and COVID money that the village had received. Very little of the cost required local funds.
Another project that should be finished in June is the Ruihley Park splash pad. Alt explained that the features needed to finish the pad are ready to install, but sod must be laid around the pad first before it opens for the summer.
Alt added that the village administration building remodel will be finished this year. Most of the original building was finished by 1912 with some renovations over the years.
However, he noted that as walls were opened for the current remodeling a number of electrical and structural issues from earlier projects were discovered. Those had to be fixed to bring the building up to code.
Therefore, Alt said the final cost of the project will likely be about $1.7 million. This year’s projects include rebuilds of West Mechanic and Pleasant streets at an estimated cost $1.7 million. Some of that work will be covered by a grant and the rest with local funding, according to Alt.
About $58,000 of sidewalk repairs throughout the village are planned for this year. And the final improvement is a $900,000 waterline and sidewalk project along West Barre Road. Some of that may be covered by a grant, Alt said; however, the village hasn’t heard yet whether the grant will be approved.
Two longer range projects were mentioned: a possible roundabout for the County Road 24 and Stryker Street/Route 2 intersection and a wetlands project at the village reservoir property.
No start date has been set yet for either of those. However, Krueger said that the village should learn by early July whether grant funding that would cover most of the cost of the roundabout has been approved.
He said there are several roundabout options that would make the intersection safer, including making the intersection a four-way stop. The four-way stop would save money and make the intersection safer than it currently is, but would not as safe as a roundabout, Krueger said.