With temperatures rising, Portage County residents may see an increase in yellow hard hats and road closures, as the county prepares for more construction.
Mike Collins, project manager for the Portage County Engineer’s Office, discussed the summer construction lineup, while also touching on future projects the county has in the works.
This summer, Portage County will commence construction of the Newton Falls Road Bridge replacement project in Paris Township, eyeing a spring 2027 completion, Collins said.
Portage County is also working on two other bridge projects. The first is the Seasons Road culvert in Streetsboro over Tinkers Creek, which entered bidding in May; Collins said they anticipate the project being completed in the summer. In the Portage County Engineer’s annual report in 2025, it was estimated that the project would cost $400,000.
In early April, a culvert about 25-30 feet deep underneath Seasons Road collapsed, leading to the closure of that road. In a Facebook post, Streetsboro Mayor Glenn Broska explained that the culvert was “already on The Portage County Engineers radar to be replaced” and that “a project of this size can take 60-90 days to be replaced,” letting residents know to not expect the road to be opened soon.
The other bridge replacement project is for the Waterloo Road culvert on Waterloo Road over Deer Creek in Atwater Township. Like the Seasons Road one, the project entered bidding in the spring and will begin construction in the summer. The estimated $725,000 project is anticipated to have a fall 2026 completion.
Collins said that the county engineers will also publish press releases ahead of the bridge projects, which will take between 30 to 90 days, providing information about detour routes, as well as notices on the county’s website.
For paving projects, Collins said that resurfacing of Mahoning Road in Palmyra Township and Mogadore Road in Brimfield Township will be finished in the summer. According to the annual report, the Mahoning Road resurfacing will cost about $461,193, and the Mogadore Road one will cost around $1 million.
Upcoming projects
The Portage County Engineer’s Office will work with the city of Kent on the Stow/Summit Street Bridge project, which would connect the existing sidewalk at Stow Street at Tannery Park to the one at the Summit Street/Franklin Avenue intersection. The project is currently in the design phase, which began in January, and is scheduled for construction in summer 2028.
Portage County was awarded the Ravenna Road Bridge replacement project adjacent to Towner’s Woods Park in Franklin Township. The about $2.7 million project will start construction in the fall. A completion date has been set for Sept. 30, 2027. The bridge has been closed since Dec. 21, 2017.
Also, slated for the fall is construction of the Esworthy Road Bridge replacement in Charlestown Township on Esworthy Road over Hinckley Creek. The estimated $1 million project is expected to have a spring 2027 completion date.
For those with questions about any of these projects, Collins encourages people to email him at mcollins@portageco.com.