Worthington City Council pushed four infrastructure projects forward at its March 16 meeting, committing roughly $1.9 million in appropriations and previewing a major arterial-paving bid that returns for award on April 20. Together they sketch out what residents are about to see — and hear — around town as construction season starts in late April.
2026 Street and Sidewalk Program — $1.28M to Strawser Paving
Council appropriated approximately $1.28 million for this year's neighborhood street and sidewalk maintenance program and awarded the work to Strawser Paving Company. Four contractors bid on the program, which John Moorehead, the city's director and city engineer, called a stronger response than usual. "All of the pricing came in really well", Moorehead said, despite earlier worry about asphalt costs after a 2025 fire destroyed one of the few central-Ohio asphalt plants. The bids suggest that plant is expected to reopen this construction season.
The base bid for the core neighborhood paving came in at about $890,000, roughly $160,000 under the city's $1.05 million project budget in the capital improvement program. The savings let staff fold in a railroad-crossing resurfacing, water-line tie-ins, and four bid alternates that extend the paving footprint.
Concrete curb work begins in late April. "We will be communicating to affected residents who may be seeing sidewalk repairs within the next several weeks and give them a notice of what to expect", Moorehead said.
Linworth and Snouffer Roads — Bid Award Expected April 20
Council also granted permission to bid the year's major arterial-paving project, which covers most of Linworth Road and a stretch of Snouffer Road from just west of Perry Middle School east to Linworth. The project bundles in drainage repairs, upgraded crosswalks, pedestrian push-button improvements, and replacement of a deteriorating culvert at the southern end of the corridor. "We found [the culvert] to be deteriorating as we were beginning to design this project," Moorehead said, so it's funded from a separate 2026 budget line and bid in the same package.
A short stretch of Linworth Road just south of SR-161 is being deliberately skipped. That segment falls within the future Linworth Road and SR-161 intersection improvement, a joint project of Worthington, Columbus, the Ohio Department of Transportation, and the counties, expected to go to construction in the next few years. "We're skipping over that with the arterial maintenance so that we don't end up repaving it in the near-term future," Moorehead said. Staff will assess over the summer whether interim patching is needed to keep the segment safe until the intersection project begins.
A council member asked whether the enhanced pedestrian crossings along the corridor, installed at the urging of the city's Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board and nearby residents, will be preserved through the repaving. Moorehead confirmed they will. "Enhanced crosswalk markings in our book is generally the thicker... I call them piano key because it's a large kind of horizontal line in the direction of travel," Moorehead said. "Those are being replaced as we go through the project." The city will also improve ramp configurations at some crossings and relocate pedestrian push buttons where they were inconveniently placed.
Staff are "tentatively optimistic" about pricing based on the strong response to the street program bid the prior week. The contract is expected to come back to council for award at the April 20 public hearing.
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Caren Avenue Waterline — $615K to Ruhlin Company
Council appropriated approximately $615,000 to replace the waterline on Caren Avenue, awarding the construction contract to Ruhlin Company. Ruhlin was the low bidder among four contractors, all of whom came in within roughly $75,000 of each other. "It's a good market, it looks like, to be bidding projects this time of year," Moorehead said. Ruhlin, based in Hannah, Ohio, has done similar waterline work recently for Ohio State University and several Columbus-area suburbs.
Asked how long the new pipe should last, Moorehead was specific: "100 to 120 years is the expected lifespan for a ductile iron pipe". The question referenced an earlier waterline failure on High Street that the city had to repair; barring similar material defects, residents should not expect another Caren Avenue waterline project for a century.
Some site work may begin in late April, but the waterline itself has a lead time, so the heaviest traffic impacts on the street will come later in the year. The city will share a detailed construction schedule once the contractor confirms the waterline's delivery date.
Griswold Center Elevator — Oracle Picks Up After Original Vendor Failed
Council authorized the city manager to enter a contract with Oracle to complete the long-delayed modernization of the elevator at the Griswold Center, the city's senior center. The project was originally awarded last year to a different vendor, identified in the meeting as Integrity, which had been paid roughly $85,000 to purchase the modernization materials. "They bought those and then they delivered them to us, shook our hands and then disappeared," Moorehead said. The vendor went out of business shortly afterward "without a whole lot of communication."
Staff reached out to the other contractors that had bid on the project last year. Oracle agreed to honor its original pricing and use the materials already on hand. "All of the materials that we... that were provided are exactly what we had specced out in terms of modernizing the elevator, and so it can simply be installed by another party," Moorehead said. Funds for the project were already appropriated last April, so no additional appropriation was needed.
A council member welcomed the resolution, noting the modernization is "obviously needed at the Griswold Center."
Vote summary
| Project | Action | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Street & Sidewalk Program (Ord. 06-2026, as amended) | Awarded to Strawser Paving | ~$1.28M |
| Caren Avenue Waterline (Ord. 07-2026, as amended) | Awarded to Ruhlin Company | ~$615K |
| Linworth/Snouffer Arterial | Permission to bid; award expected April 20 | TBD |
| Griswold Center Elevator (Res. 21-2026) | Contract with Oracle | (no new appropriation) |