By 1812Blockhouse; Press Releases from Senators Portman and Brown
On Tuesday, the offices of U.S. Senators Rob Portman and Sherrod Brown announced that the US Department of Transportation had awarded the City of Mansfield a nearly $7.5 million federal grant through the FY 2022 Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program.
The program provides funding for surface transportation projects of local and regional significance. Previously, this program has been funded at $1 billion per year. Thanks to the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which Senator Portman spearheaded, Senator Brown helped write and pass, and which was signed into law last November, annual funding levels have been increased to $1.5 billion. Between the IIJA and the FY 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act, the RAISE grant program has been funded at $2.25 billion for this year.
The funds for the project will go toward rebuilding the downtown Mansfield streetscape.
“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is already getting resources to Ohio communities to improve transportation,” said Brown. “I’m working to make sure Ohio gets its fair share – or more – of infrastructure investment, and this is the first step in that effort. This investment will mean safer streets, better walkways, and will support new economic growth in Mansfield’s downtown and the broader Richland County region.”
The $7.38 million grant will help fund the city’s Main Street Revitalization project. This project will reconstruct the downtown Mansfield Streetscape from First Street to Fifth Street, including updated LED street lighting, new curbs and ADA compliant curb ramps, concrete sidewalks, brick pavers, delineated crosswalks, lighted plazas with seating. It will also rejoin Central Park via a mid-block crossing, reestablish two-way traffic to support local business, and provide on-street parking. In addition, aging water and sewer infrastructure will be restored.
The RAISE Discretionary Grant program provides a unique opportunity for the DOT to invest in road, rail, transit and port projects that promise to achieve national objectives. Previously known as the Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) and Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Discretionary Grants, Congress has dedicated nearly $8.9 billion for twelve rounds of National Infrastructure Investments to fund projects that have a significant local or regional impact.
