Traffic signal project to start

Diamond Centre Drive operation anticipated for early spring at Menard’s, Home Depot

The groundwork is soon underway for a new traffic signal on Diamond Centre Drive in

Mentor.

The week of Jan. 6, the contractor plans to begin installing underground conduit and pole foundations for a signal at the Menards/Home Depot intersection.

Four pole/mast arm combinations are expected from the manufacturer in late April.

“Due to the long lead time for pole manufacturing, the signal is not anticipated to begin operation until sometime in May,” said Mentor Engineer Dave Swiger.

During construction, periodic lane closures will occur with traffic control by flaggers, as necessary, he said.

The $208,000 project is being paid for by the city and is to improve traffic flow along the corridor.

Per a development agreement entered with the city in 2015, Menards extended the Diamond Centre Drive right-turn lane west to Emerald Court.

This was beyond the requirement based on the business’s traffic generation.

“This extra work approximately

equaled the value of the traffic signal installation,” Swiger said. “So they agreed to extend the rightturn lane beyond what was required of them to alleviate some existing traffic congestion and, in turn, the city agreed to construct

the traffic signal when required.”

The turn-lane extension and traffic signal were identified in a Menards traffic impact study as current or future necessary improvements.

Average daily traffic

along Diamond Centre is 19,500.

City Council awarded the signal project to Perram Electric Inc. of Wadsworth in August. Menards opened a 185,000-square-foot home improvement store at 9600

Diamond Centre in July.

The agreement with the city limits any future retail development to 24,000 square feet within the Menards site and requires a traffic impact study for any new development south of the store. It also prohibits

access through the property via Painesville Township without the approval of the city of Mentor.

The traffic signal is unrelated to a project that will add another westbound turn lane on Diamond Centre at Heisley Road.