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Kent Public viewing of multi-modal plans set for April 24 Columbus group to present

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Matt Fredmonsky
April 11, 2008

By Matt Fredmonsky
Record-Courier staff writer
Public discussion about a proposed multi-modal facility dubbed the Kent Central Gateway will continue this month at a seven-hour open house set for April 24.
City leaders and residents, Kent State University and Portage Area Regional Transportation Authority officials have been examining the potential for such a proposed transportation hub with TranSystems, a Columbus-based transportation consultant, for the past nine months.
The project steering committee and TranSystems project leaders previously narrowed the site search to several blocks within the area bordered by Summit, Water, South Lincoln and Main streets.
During the open house, the committee will present the two locations within the block that have been deemed most suitable for the facility by committee members and TranSystems.
Those areas are triangular segments on the northwest and southeast sides of Haymaker Parkway between Main and South DePeyster streets and between College Avenue and South Willow Street.
Kent City Manager Dave Ruller said the structure, which would incorporate bus transfers, vehicle parking and bicycle storage, would be used to facilitate economic development within the city.
"Rarely anymore are they stand-alone facilities," Ruller said. "They're done in conjunction with retail, some of them have been done in conjunction with wellness centers."
All three entities have already used federal transit dollars to facilitate the on-going feasibility study.
The study area and two proposed locations fall within Kent City Council Ward 5 representative Heidi Shaffer's jurisdiction. Shaffer said a resident raised the topic at a neighborhood meeting Sunday.
Shaffer hesitated to comment on the proposed locations because she has not yet met with TranSystems representatives, but will do so April 18.
Shaffer encouraged residents to attend the open house April 24 from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., though a specific location has not yet been determined.
"I'm very excited to see what the consultant group has come up with," she said.
The open house will include potential design layouts, Ruller said.
"It will be looking at different options of an actual layout of the facility," he said. "Again, I would caution everybody it's still very conceptual. This is really just a part of the planning process. This is still the evaluation phase."




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