Hamilton wants to add more sidewalks on 2 heavily traveled roads

The city is seeking a Transportation Alternatives grant, which is federal funds distributed through the Ohio-Kentucky-Indiana (OKI) Regional Council of Governments. The project would complete 3.4 miles of sidewalk along Main Street and establish 2.7 miles of continuous sidewalks on NW Washington Boulevard.

“It’s kind of that final gap of sidewalk, and it’s right in the middle of a really busy commercial corridor,” said Hamilton Planning Director Liz Hayden.

The capital project is estimated to be $1.2 million, with the city expected to pay nearly $360,000 of that price tag, according to a staff report produced by the city’s planning and engineering departments.

But the funds for the Transportation Alternative program ― which focuses on non-vehicular transportation improvements such as for bicycling and walking ― are for federal Fiscal Year 2027, which runs from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027.

The grant application submitted on Friday by the planning and engineering departments would complete the sidewalk network on Main Street from Brookwood Avenue to NW Washington Boulevard and on NW Washington from Main Street to Eden Park Drive.

Connecting sidewalks in this area aligns with the city’s goal of completing the network identified in Hamilton’s 2020 Active Transportation Plan (ATP). The plan notes that the completion of the sidewalk network is one of Hamilton’s “high” priorities.

According to the ATP, the city recognized that outside its downtown and urban core, sidewalks are a lacking amenity for pedestrians. Filling gaps between sidewalks was one of the highest priorities among community members, not far behind reducing crime and blight and adding more multi-use paths and trails.

The sidewalk network is not just important for the city’s pedestrians but also for its businesses.

The stretch of Main Street and NW Washington Boulevard is a key commercial corridor for Hamilton as tens of thousands of people visit it weekly, either for groceries, restaurants, or other retailers. There are also nearly 2,200 employees that work within a half-mile of the proposed project.