The Ohio Department of Transportation's Transportation Review Advisory Council has approved a $5.6 million grant for the City of Mount Vernon's State Route 13 relocation project. The total project costs are estimated at $15.2 million.
According to the city's grant application, the project will relocate State Route 13 to the southwest along the Kokosing River, connecting South Main Street to Sandusky Street. The new three-lane roadway will replace Phillips Drive and accommodate two-way traffic. Buffer space between the roadway and the river will be increased. As part of this initiative, State Route 229 and US Route 36 will be rerouted through downtown Mount Vernon to reduce traffic in the Public Square and improve pedestrian mobility.
Correspondence from Mike Hobbs of GDP Group, attached to the grant application, indicates that the Transportation Review Advisory Council funded 80% of the right-of-way acquisition phase of the project. The Central Ohio Rural Planning Organization funded approximately 38% of the project's design phase. TRAC grants and other funding result in an 80% federal share of the project's construction.
A report from Mount Vernon News in 2021 said that the Mount Vernon City Council supported the initial TRAC grant request for real estate acquisition and engineering work.
In May 2023, Mount Vernon News reported that a $3.3 million grant was approved for this project. During that meeting, it was authorized by the council for the Safety-Service director to identify and select qualified firms to provide real estate services for the South Sandusky Street/State Route 13 relocation project.
