BY RACHEL MELCER and TANYA ALBERT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Long separated by corridors of commercial growth and plans for development, residents of northwest Hamilton County are now divided further by a felt-tip-pen line on a map.
In the Hamilton County Engineer's Office, the line was drawn to represent a proposed upgrade of several roads that would ease travel between Ronald Reagan Highway and Interstate 74 in Harrison.
The county is presenting the idea of adding New Haven Road, Blue Rock Road and the western section of the Ronald Reagan Highway to the state highway system. That would require developers, rather than taxpayers, to foot the bill for some future widening and improvements.
In Harrison and Colerain townships - where officials generally support the idea - it would mean easing traffic problems and acting with foresight to handle growth.
But Crosby Township trustees, who recently passed a resolution against the proposal, say it would force growth and encourage more traffic.
"The other areas, yes, do have problems. But I don't feel that we should suffer because of them," Crosby Township Trustee Jane Harper said. "It will just lower (our) quality of life, over something that has nothing to do with Crosby Township."
Harrison and Colerain townships have already grown along the corridor.
In the city of Harrison, long lines of cars and trucks back up daily where New Haven Road narrows from four lanes into a two-lane I-74 overpass. Officials have been working for years to persuade the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) to widen the bridge. They think the improvements will come if the road is designated a state highway.
"Maybe 30 years ago, it could have been claimed as a luxury because development wasn't here yet. But now, in 1998, it is a necessity," said Harrison Councilwoman Judy Kercheval. "I have to worry about our own needs down here."
County engineers stress that so far, this is just a proposal being considered by the state, county and local communities.
"We're asking: 'Are there merits to it?' " said Chief Deputy County Engineer Ted Hubbard.
His office passed along the proposal to ODOT, which has to approve any additions to the state highway system. Before changes could be made, engineering and environmental studies as well as public hearings would have to take place.
ODOT is still reviewing the proposal, said Kim Patton, spokeswoman for ODOT District 8.
Specifically, the county wants to improve the existing two lanes and add turn lanes at key intersections, Mr. Hubbard said. Then, if development occurred, there would be a good base roadway with room to expand and accommodate more traffic.
"It's not an extended Ronald Reagan Highway," Mr. Hubbard said. "What we're talking about is improving an existing facility." The plans may be preliminary, but Crosby Township residents aren't taking any chances.
Nearly 100 neighbors crammed into the township civic center at a recent meeting, forcing Trustee President Gary Storer to move them into a larger garage bay usually reserved for maintenance trucks. On the edge of their folding chairs, they listened as Mr. Hubbard and County Engineer William Brayshaw outlined the plan.
"Normally we have about six people show up at (township) meetings," Mr. Storer said. "I can assure you that if we have this many people at a meeting, people are upset and they have concerns."
Local farmers and people who live along New Haven Road said increased traffic would destroy their way of life.
Even those who support development that would bring more tax dollars into the community said there is very little room on the corridor for businesses to build. A forest preserve and floodplain line part of the road in Crosby Township.
"Except for the rush hour, New Haven Road now is practically desolate," said Ray Hoskins. "If you do this, cars will be zooming past . . . trucks will be zooming past."
County planners say more traffic could be on the way, with or without the proposed corridor improvements. Businesses are likely to pop up as public water and sewer lines are extended into western Hamilton County this spring.
With development booming in Harrison to the west and increasing in Colerain Township in the east, Crosby Township residents feel stuck in the middle. They haven't experienced any commercial growth.
Mr. Hubbard said the road improvements could be done in phases where there is the most demand, working inward from the outer east and west extremes.
"We're trying to have some vision," Mr. Hubbard said. "We don't want to give the next generation another Colerain Avenue. . . . We want to have a plan in place."
Recognizing this, Harrison Township and the city of Harrison passed resolutions supporting the preliminary plan. Colerain Township hasn't officially taken a stance on the issue. But some Colerain Township trustees think county engineers are on the right track.
Trustee Joe Wolterman said the plans would make the corridor safer to travel and would help growth in Colerain Township. He hopes Crosby Township residents will keep an open mind.
"You can't stop growth. The market is going to dictate it," he said. "But you can control it and we can buffer it with infrastructure."
The plan is about preparing for what may be inevitable growth - not trying to attract it, Mr. Brayshaw said. For example, adding the roads to the state highway system will make it easier to obtain state and federal dollars for further improvements.
And if growth does not come, then the plan will remain just a felt-tip line on a map.
"(If that happens), all we've done is put a plan down on paper that doesn't get used," Mr. Hubbard said.
