The Connecting Toledo Neighborhoods to Opportunity project is a $53 million project that will redevelop the streets in the Uptown and Junction neighborhoods, repaving the streets and making those streets bicycle and pedestrian accessible and friendly through enhanced pedestrian infrastructure, bike lanes, and bike shelters. It will also provide new water and sewage infrastructure, improved lighting, and will plant about 2300 trees alongside the streets.
The project was awarded a $20 million RAISE grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The remainder of the funding will come from the City of Toledo.
“At the core of the mission of this project is people, it’s all about providing better connectivity for people to various opportunities whether that be workforce, education, even just basic necessities,” said Brandon Sehlhorst, Director of Economic Development for the City of Toledo, and “one of the reasons why this project is so important is because of its economic development potential.”
That economic development potential is seen in Promedica’s recent renovation of the Jefferson Center, now called The Innovation Post. On Jefferson Avenue and 14th Streets, across from the Toledo Club, the Innovation Post will initially house four companies: Wurtec Incorporated, WorkSpring, Junior Achievement of Northwestern Ohio, and SEGULA Technologies USA. Initially about 170 people will work in the building.
This “really is the anchor of what is meant to be a much larger innovation district within the Uptown area,” says Mr. Sehlhorst, “about 2 months ago we cut the ribbon on the Innovation Post, [and the companies] are locating at this area because of the goal of establishing this larger innovation ecosystem.”
The goal of the Connecting Toledo Neighborhoods to Opportunity project “is really to create the networking assets, the economic assets, the physical assets within a particular area to drive innovation and workforce development,” Mr Sehlhorst added.
The area in question to be developed encompasses Dorr Street, 13th street to 21st Street, from Monroe Street to Adams Street. Seating will be installed on 17th Street, a two-lane cycle track, as well as artistic bike and bus shelters. Artistic crosswalks will be created, and public art installed which will add to 17th Street’s visual appeal and walkability.
The project will create a new multi-use path on Dorr Street that connects to a bike lane. Replacing the current narrow sidewalk, the 10-foot-wide multi-use path includes a bike parkway and new trees, landscaping, lighting, bike shelters, and seating areas. This will improve the connection between Junction and Uptown neighborhoods and will connect people to the African American Legacy Project and the Mott Branch Library.
The City is also partnering with TARTA to create the region’s first mobility hub right outside the Jefferson center. This TARTA Mobility Hub will be a much more substantial bus station: It will be elevated; it will provide better accessibility to people with disabilities, and it will provide a computer screen with real time updates of where buses are. The TARTA Mobility Hub will be covered, well-lit, and it will also be in an area where you will have access to scooters, bike facilities, and nearby public parking.
Vacant land, vacant buildings, or surface-level parking cover at least 40% of the land in the Uptown and Junction neighborhoods. “But we see that as an enormous opportunity for new development,” says Mr. Sehlhorst, “and so one way that you attract private sector investment is through catalytic public sector investment in infrastructure. And so, we started to look at what it would take to redo all of the roads in the Uptown neighborhood [and] to fix the underlying problem, which is the age and condition of the water and sanitary lines. Also improving the roads and streetscape, creating a sense of place and vitality through the streetscape. We have done that in downtown on Summit Street for example where we have invested in the city’s nicest streetscape…And we have seen that that has paid off with major investment in the downtown area. There’s been over $2 billion of investment in downtown Toledo over the past 7 years and a lot of that is attributed to the public investment we’ve made in Summit Street and the Riverwalk and elsewhere.”
Adams Street
Adams Street, a bustling street of restaurants, bars, local business, and entrepreneurship, will be transformed – the project will increase pedestrian space and provide additional space for outdoor dining and public art. Street trees, historic lighting, accent lighting, artistic crosswalks, and seating will also be added to the street to improve Adams Street’s appeal. “Adams street is a very cool, dynamic, grassroots, place,” says Mr. Sehlhorst, “this is where we have our Pride festival and Zombie Crawl – Adams Street is already cool. There are entrepreneurs and businesses that have invested and taken the risk of investing on Adams Street for a long time and Adams is a focus that is going to get a major overhaul in terms of the streetscape. To support the Village on Adams’ vision of what Adams Street should be, which is really an entertainment village where we have cool events and cool bars and restaurants for Toledoans to enjoy.”
Zach Lahey, owner of Manhattan’s Pub and Cheer restaurant and bar on Adams Street and founding board member of the neighborhood group The Village on Adams says “We’re extremely excited [about the project]. The Village has sort of produced an offshoot called the Adams Street Steering Committee that has been meeting on a monthly basis to kind of keep the neighborhood’s hopes and desires at the forefront of the design and the direction of the project.” He says Brandon Sehlhorst and the project design teams have been attending their monthly meetings as well.
Two of the major hopes and goals of the Adams Street steering committee are installing historic street lighting and reutilizing the brick that is pulled up from other streets that will be under construction. The project decided to utilize a good amount of the reclaimed brick to pave most of the intersections on Adams as well as a parking area and parking lanes, accent pavers on the sidewalk, the curb plantings and tree boxes. There will also be an arch installed over 11th street that will be lit at night and festival string lighting on other parts of the street.
After completion of the project “when you find yourself on Adams street you [will] know it,” says Mr. Lahey, “visually and atmospherically, I think it’s going to be a real stunning change for the positive – the design is quite clever, they’re still keeping that weird unique vibe that makes Adams street what it is, that sort of odd-ball attraction that attracts people from all walks of life and really is a wonderful melting pot of people who enjoy being themselves – that’s one of the best parts of Adams street, and I think the design really reflects that. They’ve also kept that weird, funky, fun element to it.”
Regarding how restaurants like Mr. Lahey’s will fare after the project is completed, he said “we are going to be right at the heart of probably the most exciting street in the region and to be right at the heart of that in a historic building, amongst several other historic buildings – it’s going to explode our business and we’re already doing extremely well, and so to have that go to the next level is really going to be amazing.”
Work on the Connecting Toledo Neighborhoods to Opportunity project is slated to begin in 2027 to be completed by 2030.
