Painesville applauded for spring project

It’s important for cities to look attractive and make it easy for residents and visitors to get around. Based on the importance of these two goals, we applaud the city of Painesville for its efforts in working at beautifying and revitalizing the community, as well as making it more accessible.

One particular initiative that has caught our attention is the North Park Place Transportation Enhancement Project, which is scheduled for construction in spring 2019.

This project will focus on the front of the new Lake County Administration Building site on the northeast corner of Veteran’s Park and is a joint venture between Lake County and the city of Painesville, according to a news release.

We like the fact that this effort will include road and sidewalk upgrades around Painesville’s square to benefit both pedestrians and motor vehicles.

“Right now, the perimeter of the square is very vehicle focused,” said Doug Lewis, Painesville’s assistant city manager and the project manager. “This project will still maintain the convenience of driving and parking around the square, but improve the experience for pedestrians in the northeast corner. By bumping the park out and creating a landscaping space in front of the new Administration Building, we are making a more visually pleasing and safer improvement for residents, workforce members and county visitors.”

It’s interesting to note that the North Park Place Transportation Enhancement Project will include similar upgrades as the 2014 Main Street Streetscape.

It will feature roadway narrowing in the corner, stormwater quality improvements, landscaping, benches, bike racks, porous pavers, lighting and redesigned street parking, the release also said.

The goal is to improve the safety of pedestrians and bicyclists who are vulnerable in the long corner crosswalk that currently exists, City Engineer LeeAnn Exum said.

In addition, we’re impressed at the timing of this project, which will improve the look and functionality of the northeast corner of the park to coincide with the Administration Building’s grand opening in mid-2019. The new administration building is being built at 85 N. Park Place in Painesville and will be connected to the existing building at 105 Main St.

“Painesville is a walkable city,” said City Planner Lynn White. “With the new Laketran transportation center on St. Clair Street, this project is looking to draw visitors and residents from Main Street into Veteran’s Park and back.”

Painesville City obtained $303,699 in funding from the Lake County Community Development Block Grant. The city also was granted $150,000 from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency for the improvements.

Any future streetscape plans will depend on the availability of funding, Exum said.

We commend Painesville for its desire to make the city more attractive, safer and easier to navigate, while at the same time ensuring that funding is available to complete projects. It’s important to balance vision and enthusiasm with a sense of fiscal responsibility to ensure that taxpayers’ money is spent wisely.