Press Release
$5 Million Awarded to Summit County Engineer
The application to the Local Major Bridge Program was successful
Feb 21, 2024 - Summit County
Summit County Engineer Alan Brubaker, P.E., P.S. is pleased to announce that an application to the Local Major Bridge Program was successful, and the County has been awarded $5 million for the replacement of the N. Main St bridge over the Cuyahoga River, also known as the High Level Bridge.
The Local Major Bridge Program provides federal funds to counties and municipalities for bridge replacement, bridge rehabilitation, bridge demolition, and major bridge preventative maintenance projects.
The High Level Bridge connects Summit County’s two largest cities, Akron and Cuyahoga Falls, and is used by thousands of Summit County residents daily. The funds that have been awarded will be used to help design the replacement bridge that is targeted to be built in 2030.
“We’re ecstatic to receive the $5 Million from the Local Major Bridge Program funds and are really looking forward to starting the design work of this project. The Engineer’s Office has an annual revenue of about $21 million and the project in its entirety is estimated to cost around $70 million. Without help from our partners in the state and local governments, projects like these simply could not happen. This bridge is the largest and most expensive piece of infrastructure the County owns,” said Alan Brubaker, P.E., P.S., Summit County Engineer.
The Summit County Engineer’s Office would like to thank the many supportive community partners who have advocated for the High Level Bridge Replacement Project, including Congresswoman Sykes, Senator Brown, Congressman Joyce, former Senator Rob Portman, the Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro, Summit County Council, the city of Akron, the city of Cuyahoga Falls, the Ohio Department of Transportation, and the many other local agencies and organizations who have written letters of support for the effort to bring this project to fruition.
The Summit County Engineer office spent $400,000 in 2023 to initiate preliminary engineering work and kickstart the project; then applied for the grant to help fund the design of the new bridge that will replace the current 76-year-old aging structure.
These funds will also help the High Level Bridge Replacement Project qualify for additional federal funds. The further along a project is in the planning and design process, the better the chance the project will qualify for and be awarded federal discretionary grant funds.
Residents can keep up to date with the current project status by visiting the Summit County Engineer website and viewing our latest projects or clicking the "More Information" button below.
