East Main Street Project

The goal is to provide an aesthetically pleasing, stately, less cluttered stress-free gateway into Kent that meets the current demands of East Main Street's users.

Working with the East Main Street Citizen's Advisory Committee, the project team established these goals:

• Jointly improve safety and aesthetics for all users
• Balance vehicular congestion with improvements to other modes of transportation
• Enhance adjacent neighborhoods
• Integrate with Kent State University's Gateway Master Plan
• Provide reasonable access to adjacent properties and side streets

The design phase of the East Main Street project should be completed in fall 2024, with construction anticipated to begin in late 2025. Construction is estimated to last three years, with traffic being maintained for the duration.

A public comment period was held in 2021 for the planning phase of the East Main Street project. Download a summary of the comments for your review. Future questions or comments can be sent to EastMainStreet@gmail.com or by contacting the city engineers directly at 330-678-8106.

East Main Street is one of the oldest streets in the city. It has gone through several major changes throughout Kent’s history. On maps from 1874, East Main Street was a rural roadway that provided connections to Ravenna with large tracts of land adjacent to the corridor. In images from 1919, East Main Street shows the beginnings of a modern street with sidewalks lining both sides, large stately homes with generous lawns lining the north side and Kent Normal College with a large park like setting on the south side.

Currently, East Main Street is a hectic five lane road with automobile-oriented commercial establishments along most of the northern side and KSU along the southern side. Multi-modal accommodations are limited along the corridor, as it is dominated by vehicular traffic. However, there are significant pedestrian, bicycle and transit demands along the corridor. 

The proposed improvements to East Main Street from Willow Street to Horning Road include:

• An expanded tree-lined center boulevard with fewer left turns
• Wider sidewalks and tree lawn on north side of the street
• Enhanced and higher visibility crosswalks for pedestrians and bikes
• Decorative streetlights added along the length of the roadway
• Shared path for bikes and pedestrians created on the south side of the street
• Two roundabouts added; one at the intersection of South Willow St., East Main St. and Haymaker Parkway, and the other at the Horning Road intersection
• New bus pull-offs and shelters installed along the corridor
• Dual left turn lane added on Midway Drive
• Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations for public use; installed in four Kent State parking lots along the north side of campus adjacent to East Main Street.

The East Main Street Improvement Project is similar to the large-scale improvements made to Summit Street. That project, completed in 2018, included a tree-lined boulevard with two roundabouts designed to reduce traffic congestion and crashes in the highly traveled stretch of road.

Data shows that the number of crashes on Summit Street has decreased significantly over the last three years. Specifically, since the project was completed, there has been a:

• 60% reduction in the total number of crashes
• 27% reduction in pedestrian crashes overall
• 100% reduction in the number of injury crashes and a 39% reduction in the total number of crashes at the Ted Boyd roundabout
• 83% reduction in injury crashes and 73% reduction in total number of crashes at the West Campus Center roundabout
• No pedestrian accidents at the roundabouts

The City of Kent, in partnership with Kent State University and the Portage Area Regional Transit Authority, has received a $5.25 million RAISE grant for the Reimagining the Gateway East Main Street Corridor project.

Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) is part of the federal government’s investment in infrastructure across the United States. The East Main Street project was one of 162 programs to receive funding. 

Reimagining the Gateway will make significant multi-modal improvements to a nearly one-mile, car-centric section of East Main Street that includes the university, entrances to nearby neighborhoods and many commercial destinations. 

Part of the RAISE grant funds will be used to install electric vehicle (EV) charging stations for public use. The stations will be located in four Kent State parking lots on the north side of campus adjacent to East Main Street. 

In announcing the award, the U.S. Transportation Department noted that project is strong in safety, environmental sustainability, quality of life, mobility and community connectivity, economic competitiveness and opportunity, state of good repair, and partnership and collaboration. 

Letters of support for the grant application came from various federal, state and local officials, including U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown and J.D. Vance of Ohio, Congressman David Joyce, Kent State President Todd Diacon, Portage County Commissioners, the Portage County Engineer, and the Ohio Department of Transportation.