City of Toledo Awarded $60,000 GM on Main Street Grant

The City of Toledo has been awarded a $60,000 GM on Main Street Grant to implement an interim traffic-calming and pedestrian-safety project along North Summit Street in the Vistula neighborhood.

The City is one of only five recipients selected nationwide for the GM on Main Street Grant Program, presented by General Motors and Main Street America. The program supports place-based projects that improve road safety, strengthen neighborhoods, and create more welcoming public spaces for people walking, biking, and driving.

The Toledo project will transform a 2,100-foot section of North Summit Street between Cherry and Olive streets by reducing the roadway from five lanes to two travel lanes with a dedicated center turn lane at Lagrange Street. The project also includes four temporary median islands created with surface-mounted delineators and new pavement markings.

The improvements are designed to reduce vehicle speeds, shorten pedestrian crossing distances, and create safer connections between the Vistula neighborhood and the Maumee Riverfront.

"Great neighborhoods are built for people, not just for traffic," Mayor Kapszukiewicz said. "This project will help reconnect residents with their riverfront, make it safer for families to walk to local businesses and parks, and continue the momentum we are seeing in Vistula. When we invest in safer streets, we strengthen the neighborhood, support local businesses, and create public spaces where people want to spend time."

North Summit Street currently carries only a fraction of its available traffic capacity, yet vehicle speeds regularly exceed the posted speed limit. Residents have long identified speeding and the difficulty of crossing Summit Street to reach the riverfront as major concerns.

This project builds on significant public and private investment already underway in Vistula, including the Glass City Riverwalk, Toledo Pickle, Ostrich Towne, and the Wonder Bread Lofts. It also advances recommendations from previous neighborhood and corridor plans that call for lane reductions, safer pedestrian crossings, and more people-oriented streets.

As Toledo's oldest neighborhood continues its revitalization, improving safe access between historic buildings, businesses, and the riverfront has become an increasingly important priority.

To launch the project, the City of Toledo and Keep Toledo/Lucas County Beautiful will host a community celebration featuring local artists, neighborhood litter cleanup activities, urban forestry demonstrations, and programming from neighborhood businesses and community partners.

The interim improvements will allow the City to address current safety concerns while evaluating the design before permanent medians and pedestrian crossings are constructed.