For the better part of the last 2 years, construction zones, traffic detours, and an armada of heavy equipment have made Summit Street a “no-drive” zone for anyone short on patience or long on common sense.
While the end is just below the horizon, the City and KSU engineers predict more of the same for most of 2018 before the sun sets on this $18 million traffic safety improvement project.
In the meantime, time marches on and a new student housing project is rolling in on Summit Street at the Presbyterian Church property just west of the KSU Power Plant.
The privately owned Church property sits on prime real estate given its close proximity to the center of campus — which is why the a couple of years ago the Church leaders decided to get in the student housing business.
Churches aren’t often in the business of building student housing so the Church leaders sought out a private developer and forged a partnership which would add some 380 new student housing beds on the Church property.
The Church gets a more reliable income stream to carry out their mission, and easy access to 380 potential new parishioners — and the students get a very convenient place to live.
It’s a tight site for 380 new units but that’s nothing good architects and prayers can’t fix.
When all is said and done, the Church will be a little harder to see sitting behind the new apartment building on what is currently the front lawn of the Church but the Church leaders want everyone to know that they’re staying open as a place of worship.
It’s never easy to construct a new 380 unit high rise apartment building on a postage stamp site, but throw it in the middle of the Summit Street reconstruction project and you’ve got a recipe for frustrations.
The various construction project managers do their best not to trip over each other but despite the best intentions it’s a complicated area with trucks coming and going in all directions — and don’t forget the those 27,000 students, faculty and staff that are trying to navigate the obstacle course as well.
Fortunately, the spring semester is wrapping up and once we get past graduation, the contractors should have a little less thru-traffic to contend with.
Overall, things have been going as well as can be expected under the circumstances but no doubt some frustrations have started to build.
There’s also been some recent concerns with the student housing trucks causing some damage on the newly installed streets and sidewalks along Summit Street.
Please know that we routinely remind the contractors that they are responsible for repairing any damage they cause and our staff routinely inspect the area to keep track of possible damage.
Obviously it’s a very busy corridor and it’s hard to do anything that doesn’t affect someone but the City and Kent State staff are on the site daily trying to keep things moving as safely and productively as possible.