May 25 – NORTH KINGSVILLE – After more than 18 months of work, a section of Route 531 is open again, according to the Ohio Department of Transportation.
Route 531 was closed between LaBounty Road and just west of Route 193 in late November 2022, due to erosion that had invaded the road near the North Kingsville-Ashtabula Township line, and ODOT began an emergency project soon after to protect the road.
Steel sheet piles were driven into the ground adjacent to the road to stabilize the embankment.
Work continued on the section of road periodically throughout 2023 and 2024.
In March, ODOT closed Route 531 adjacent to Monday Drive for another erosion protection project.
ODOT spokesman Ray Marsch said the section of Route 531 adjacent to Monday Drive is expected to open to traffic late next week.
ODOT is also planning another project in the area intended to provide long-range projections for Route 531.
The project would include bringing in large rocks and placing them along the shoreline, then stacking smaller rocks on top of them up the hillside, ODOT spokesman Justin Chesnic previously said.
“We are working to get the permits now, through the Army Corps of Engineers and the Ohio EPA,” he said in April. “It takes at least a year to get those permits, so we’re hoping that by next May or June we’ll have the permits for that. And it’s probably a $20 to $30 million project, about $25 million, I would say. “
The project could begin as early as 2026, depending on financing.
