Efforts to widen and straighten the once-rural Route 228 has been going on for 16 years.

The state Department of Transportation in August 2002 held a public meeting at the Mars Middle School to show residents of southwestern Butler County the 18 alternatives it had created to widen and realign Route 228 from Route 8 to Route 19.

That meeting drew 700 residents, and many of them gave their input on the 18 colored lines on several huge aerial maps that represented the various alternatives PennDOT was considering for a new and improved Route 228.

The extreme southern alternatives saw Route 228 dipping into Richland, Pine and Marshall townships in Allegheny County.

The northernmost alternative saw Route 228 crossing Route 8 in Middlesex Township just south of Holy Sepulcher Church, crossing Sheldon Road and meandering into Adams Township.

The unveiling of the 18 alternatives caused a group of Lowery Drive neighbors in Middlesex Township to form Families United to Maintain our Existing Serenity (FUMES), as a handful of alternatives that sought to connect Route 228 West with Route 228 East would have cut swaths through the township and obliterated many neighborhoods.

At a November 2002 township supervisors meeting attended by 200 residents, FUME's leader, Denise Hoover, convinced the township supervisors to approve a resolution to officially disagree with PennDOT regarding the alternatives that connected the two ends of the highway.

PennDOT eventually eliminated many of the alternatives based on the citizen comments it had received at various public meetings, the input of the citizens action committee it had formed and project costs.

By then, project engineers could estimate the cost of improving Route 228 from Route 8 to Route 19 at about $120 million.

Project Redefined

In September 2004, the state secretary of transportation asked project engineers to re-evaluate the project and trim costs.

PennDOT managed to rework the large project and cut the cost to a total estimate of $80 million.

Eventually, PennDOT announced that the large project could not be funded and broke it into smaller widening projects that would connect with one another, resulting in the eventual widening of the entire stretch of Route 228.

Some projects have been completed, such as the section from the current Adams Area Fire District station to just west of the intersection at Mars-Valencia Road.

A $6.5 million project to add turning lanes on Pittsburgh Street and Warrendale Road and widen Route 228 at the intersection is currently under way.

A $15 million project to widen and improve Route 228 past the Mars School District schools to the new bridge near the fire station was unveiled last year.

That project is scheduled for construction to begin no later than 2020.

After a few adjustments based on public input, PennDOT finally settled on a route for the Balls Bend project, which will be paid for by the $20 million in federal funding announced by the commissioners and Congressman Mike Kelly, R-3rd, Thursday.

The new route would dip south of Allemande Drive as it crosses Harbison Road to eliminate the sweeping curve there. It would then straighten out Balls Bend and reconnect with Route 228 on the western end of the bend.

The project's total cost was estimated at about $24.3 million. The additional $4.3 million was hastily raised last weekend by the county commissioners, who learned they would not receive the $20 million in federal funding unless they were able to find funding for the $4.3 million gap between the amount they applied for and the amount they were awarded.

Collaborative Effort

At Thursday's announcement that the county was awarded the $20 million BUILD grant, Commissioners Leslie Osche and Kim Geyer extolled the Trump administration's focus on making the White House accessible to local officials.

Geyer said when the commissioners received an invitation to the White House last year, they weren't buying it.

“We thought they were fake,” Geyer said of the invitations.

The commissioners learned the invitations were real when the U.S. Department of Intergovernmental Affairs office called to ask why they hadn't responded to the invitations.

“They said, 'The president wants to have people here who have their ear to the ground and work with local people,” Geyer said.

She also praised U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao, whom she called the catalyst for the commissioners applying for the grant.

“She talked about different approaches to transportation infrastructure and how we can achieve that best,” Geyer said.

Geyer also said state Secretary of Transportation Leslie Richards was a key piece of the puzzle in securing the federal funds.

“We've had a great working relationship with her,” Geyer said.

Kelly said at the announcement on Thursday that the grant application was unique because it involved both political parties as well as officials from the local, state and federal levels.

“It was a collaborative effort, and everyone played a role,” Kelly said. “(U.S. Rep.) Bill Shuster said he's never seen a group work together this well.”

Shuster, R-9th, is the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Joe Dubovi praised the county's director of economic development, Mark Gordon, for his dogged pursuit of the grant.

“He's the ramrod,” Dubovi said. “He's very good at what you hired him to do and he deserves a lot of credit,” Dubovi said.

Gordon said that Route 228 and farther west, Freedom Road, serves as a 26.2-mile corridor between river ports in Monaca, Beaver County, and Freeport, Armstrong County.

An upgraded road will help move commerce between the two sites, which will only benefit Butler County, Gordon said.

The project is to be completed no later than 2025, according to the specifications of the federal grant.