Strongsville Mayor testifies against repeal efforts for proposed Boston Road interchange

COLUMBUS — Strongsville Mayor Tom Perciak testified against House Bill 276, which aims to prevent an Interstate 71 interchange at Boston Road. Perciak's testimony occurred during the bill's third hearing in the House Economic and Workforce Development Committee on Tuesday. He said consistent heavy traffic at the intersection of state Route 82 and Howe Road in Strongsville shows the need for changes to infrastructure in the area. "Strongsville's population and job growth has increased the stress on the region's transportation network," Perciak said. "The success of Strongsville, a successful Northeast Ohio community, is dependent upon the safe and efficient flow of traffic into, out of and around our community." He said the provision in the state's transportation budget, which House Bill 276 seeks to repeal, allows local entities to work together to address issues with transportation. "The city of Strongsville shares the same desire as any community in the region when it comes to decisions regarding new or improved infrastructure," Perciak said. "We agree decisions should be data driven and believe this provision this bill seeks to repeal is allowing for the responsible entities to undertake the appropriate studies to gather the needed data and make decisions accordingly." State Rep. Melanie Miller, R-Ashland, is a co-sponsor of House Bill 276 and represents Brunswick. She said Strongsville came out with a study last summer that showed an interchange at Boston Road would not alleviate congestion in most areas. ODOT Director Jack Marchbanks previously stated he agreed that an interchange in the area does not seem to reduce congestion or crash frequency. "The study you're talking about, in my mind, was nothing more than a traffic study," Perciak said. "When you look at that study, and you review all the details, and you get into the bread and butter of it, you can see that even if it's a 4 percent or a 2 percent reduction, it's substantial when you look at the big numbers." Miller also asked him why constituents are put at risk of losing their homes over a project that has been shown to not be feasible thus far. Perciak said homeowners of properties around Boston Road were previously told of the potential for an interchange in the area. "I know there's a sensitivity issue as far as the residents," he said. "I can't disagree with that." His hope is for the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency to conduct a feasibility study and make a determination from there. Perciak said Strongsville would have no choice but to accept the results of the study, including if the study suggested another location would better alleviate congestion. "NOACA has come out publicly stating that they are in opposition to this proposal," Miller said. "They do support the repeal because they have also seen that they do not see a possible solution with what has been proposed." Gov. Mike DeWine signed House Bill 23 into law on March 31. Section 5501.60 of the bill mandates the existence of an interstate highway exchange every 4.5 miles under the following conditions: Both neighboring municipalities have a population of more than 35,000 according to the most recent census. The municipalities are in different counties. At least one of the counties has a population of more than 1 million, according to the most recent census. Therefore, under the current law, it is mandated that an interchange be built on Boston Road, Drake Road or Grafton Road. Miller, state Rep. Sharon Ray, R-Wadsworth, and state Sen. Romanchuk, R-Ontario, introduced legislation to repeal the section of House Bill 23 during a news conference on Sept. 14. Romanchuk's companion bill, Senate Bill 155, will have its fourth hearing today in the Senate Transportation Committee. Contact reporter Madisyn Woodring at (330) 721-4049 or mwoodring@medina-gazette.com.