Reserve funds will finance about $1.5 million in upgrades to Miamisburg’s downtown Riverfront Park as the city prepares to improve access to the 10-acre site.
Road and utility work — expected to begin in August and be completed next spring — marks the next phase on a long-term plan for the park that hosts dozens of events each year along the Great Miami River.
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Completing the park’s $10 million master plan is a key issue in the city’s downtown redevelopment. While Miamisburg officials have sought to use outside funding for Riverfront Park upgrades, Mayor Dick Church Jr. has said public funds will help pay for the work.
The city’s financial reserves have a sufficient balance to fund the two-lane road to replace North Miami Avenue and accompanying work, according to Jennifer Johns, the city’s assistant finance director.
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City officials “have indicated that they will use reserves to pay for the Riverfront Park Road, and that is where we will be making the expenditures in the months to come,” according to Johns.
A measure approved by Miamisburg City Council last week will give the city the option of issuing notes or bonds and replenish the reserve funds, she noted.
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“If at that time council feels it necessary to borrow and pay back over time, then we would be able to reimburse the general fund from the proceeds,” she said in an email.
Bids have yet to go out for the project, but estimates indicate the road work will cost about $1.1 million, and the utility upgrades are expected to run about $400,000, said Miamisburg City Engineer Bob Stanley.
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“The whole purpose is to improve both pedestrian and vehicle (access) throughout the park,” he said. “This phase will actually allow us to take out the old Miami Avenue in the park area for those future phases of work.”
The new road will span about 1,000 feet between Linden Avenue and Ferry Street, according to the city. It will include two 11-foot lanes, gutters and sidewalks, a new feature for that area, Stanley said.
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It will complement the park’s new entryway, which was the first phase of the plan.
Playground work estimated to cost $200,000 is on hold until funding can be secured, Stanley said.
The utility work will include 8-inch water lines to replace aging ones, a new storm sewer and piping drainage components, he said.
RIVERFRONT PARK PLAN
Phase 1 – entry and arch, $200,000;
Phase 2 – playground area A, $200,000;
Phase 3 - street and utility configuration, $1.1 million
Phase 4 – street and infrastructure, $1 million
Phase 5 – buildings, plaza, water feature, $2.4 million
Phase 6 – bike trail, amphitheater, playground area, B $1 million
Phase 7 – parking lots, $400,000
Phase 8 – remaining hardscape and landscape, $1.3 million
Source: city of Miamisburg
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