Big ticket repairs slated for I-480 walls
By Jeff Gallatin
North Olmsted
Published May 17, 2006

City officials and residents are glad making some noise about the sound barrier walls along I-480 west and east will lead to some big repairs for the structures.

Mayor Thomas O’Grady said the city and state have reached an agreement with the Ohio Department of Transportation to provide engineering and rehabilitation of the noise barrier walls for work later this year.

“We’re very pleased that the state will be giving us major assistance in something that is badly needed,” O’Grady said.

Nicole Dailey Jones, chairwoman of   council’s streets and transportation committee, said the news will please residents near the walls, particularly near the Stearns Road exits, which are located in her ward.

“I’m glad the state is moving on this because we’ve had numerous resident  complaints about the condition of those walls,” said Jones, who wrote a recent memo to Service Director Duane Limpert about the walls and the residents’ concerns.

O’Grady said the current schedule calls for construction plans to be completed by Aug. 1, with repairs tentatively slated to begin about Oct. 1. The mayor said city officials can’t estimate how much the work will cost or how long it will take to complete.

“Those will depend on the construction plans for the project, which the state is handling,” O’Grady said. “I know it will cost a significant amount of money because the state was talking about it costing about a million per mile for those barriers to go up.”

Jones said the new barriers will be a major improvement.

“Some sections of the wall have separated from each other and have fallen into yards and other areas,” Jones said. “It certainly doesn’t look very good, and it’s a massive safety concern for the residents living by them.”

She said the walls’ current condition doesn’t allow them to fulfill their job.

“The purpose of having the sound barrier walls no longer exists if there are gaps that are not repaired and the interstate noise can infiltrate through the gaps,” Jones said.

Gary Sapp, a Sutton Drive resident who has complained about the problem, said he’s pleased by the announcement.

“That’s great news,” Sapp said. “Having the state start on it the same year it hears about it is light speed for a governmental agency.”

Sapp said the noise level has become an increasing problem for him and his wife.

“It’s really been bothering her a great deal and had us concerned about our purchasing the home near the walls,” Sapp said.

Jones said Sapp had plenty of company.

“It’s been a problem for a lot of residents,” she said. “They’ve been waiting patiently for something to be done so I’m glad action is being taken, although I am sorry the work won’t get underway until October. I understand they have to get a plan done. I just know it is a safety problem and noisy.”

O’Grady said state officials plan to deal with the noise problem as part of the planning process and replace wood portions that have deteriorated badly.

“ODOT officials tell us they will be getting top facilities in there,” O’Grady said.