Locals Debate Road Closure on newstalkradiowhio.com

Locals Debate Road Closure

06/02/2008 05:44:31

BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio -- The country's oldest concrete street is getting its potholes patched, but residents of this central Ohio town cannot agree if anyone should ever drive on it again.

The 117-year-old road is now rough enough that visitors think they are still in horse-and-buggy times. The street is a major way to get through downtown and business owners nearby would rather use it than preserve it.

Susan Froebe, the executive director a downtown economic development group, said she first favored closing the street.

"Then I realized that closing it is not the only way. It is just the easiest way," she said.

The Ohio Department of Transportation gave the city $215,000 to repair and restore Court Avenue. When finished, about 60 percent of the street will be the original structure concrete inventor George Bartholomew first tested here in 1891.

The city's historical society has pushed the city not to reopen the street when repairs are completed.

"The street was built for horses and wagons, not cars," said Todd McCormick, curator and director of the historical society. "It's a shame we can't do everything possible to save that concrete and our history."

The street itself is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It also features a statue of Bartholomew, who picked the Logan County site because of its pits of lime-rich material.

"We want it to last as long as it can," McCormick said. "Once we close it and preserve it, people could still go there and see it and it would still serve a historical purpose."

City Engineer Tim Notestine said the original concrete has held up. Officials closed the street for seven years in the 1990s for a round of preservation. McCormick said he wants it closed for good now.

(Article courtesy of www.springfieldnewssun.com)