{"id":13312,"date":"2026-03-11T16:41:05","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T16:41:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/?p=13312"},"modified":"2026-03-11T16:41:05","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T16:41:05","slug":"toledo-neighborhoods-under-threat-part-iv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/11\/toledo-neighborhoods-under-threat-part-iv\/","title":{"rendered":"Toledo Neighborhoods Under Threat, Part IV"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><em><a href=\"http:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13196 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-300x126.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"126\" srcset=\"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-300x126.jpg 300w, https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>By Peggy Daly-Masternak, Coordinator for the I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Beyond burdens to nearby residents.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>This is the fourth article of a series of five published, that if the earlier articles did not inspire you to oppose the I-475 expansion plan, perhaps this article, with more plan details will affect you and every taxpayer in this boondoggle. Because, let the truth be told, much of the Ohio Department of Transportation\u2019s (ODOT\u2019s) own data disproves the need for this expansion and has prohibitive costs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Plan Details:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The planned needless expansion of I-475 was last reported to cost $226.5 million\u2014a quarter of a billion dollars, with essential assets denied any funding.<\/li>\n<li>On any day, there are and will be tens of thousands of people in this harmful highway zone: i.e., children in schools and childcare facilities, workers in shops and offices, seniors in housing and assisted living centers, patients in medical facilities, and people actively using nearby parks, community venues, and houses of worship, all within ODOT\u2019s project area.<\/li>\n<li>While ODOT claims rationales of congestion and safety to justify this project, both can be disproven by their own data and\/or data they report to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The FHWA compiles a \u201cFreight Bottleneck Database.\u201d In 2024, the average delays reported were less than 1.5 minutes on I-475\u2019s project segment, proving there is no congestion. If a driver taps brakes at rush hour here, they would be doing so in any city in the nation. Those who have lived in and experienced true congestion in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, or elsewhere laugh out loud over ODOT\u2019s myth of I-475 congestion.<\/li>\n<li>On safety, metrics from ODOT\u2019s consulting engineer, both fatalities and injuries will INCREASE with the widening, potentially up by 17%. The I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition believes that people are more important than property. ANY increases in deaths or injuries make this project unacceptable.<\/li>\n<li>To accommodate widening, every one of ten vehicle bridges spanning this project will be destroyed and rebuilt. Each bridge has been rehabbed or rebuilt in the last twenty years, with most construction occurring in the last 10 years, costing millions of dollars. ODOT knew widening was planned all along and still chose to waste taxpayer resources.<\/li>\n<li>Additionally, the Norfolk Southern Railroad, a private corporation responsible for the East Palestine, Ohio, disaster, will be gifted a new bridge at taxpayer expense. It will replace the gray metal bridge spanning the highway between Holland-Sylvania Road and the US-23 Interchange. As reported by ODOT\u2019s consultants, this is a single-track bridge, generally used twice per month. As of August 2024, this expansion will cost taxpayers at the minimum, $18.1 million with recent unspecified cost increases.<\/li>\n<li>For six years, ODOT has left neighborhood residents hanging, not identifying whose property and how much will be taken for the expansion. The closest admission by ODOT, stated at a November 2024 joint hearing before Toledo City Council and Lucas County Commissioners, was \u201cup to 30\u201d private property owners will lose \u201cup to 10-foot strips\u201d of their property\u2014all for an unnecessary widening project.<\/li>\n<li>ODOT reported the two largest expenditures in August 2024, collectively at $94 million for the bridge expansions and $37.5 million for retaining walls. Together that accounts for 66% of last reported itemized costs, which then totaled $217.5 million, (excluding costs for private property acquisition and design). Reported construction costs have since increased to that quarter of a billion dollars.<\/li>\n<li>If ODOT substantially stayed within the current highway footprint and reconstructed the existing roadbed, bridge expansions would be unnecessary. There would be far less cost, if any, for retaining walls. Perhaps existing sound walls could be left in place. It would require far less pavement (the third most costly expense at $23.3 million) and would prevent private property from being taken.<\/li>\n<li>Presently, their construction timeline is 4.5 years, from Spring 2028 to Fall 2032. This will cause even greater harms to both residents and drivers. Bumper-to-bumper construction gridlock will concentrate extreme quantities of pollutants from idling vehicles, along with additional noise, dust, and property disturbances by construction, all impacting real people nearby.<\/li>\n<li>In their 2025 Statewide Strategic Transportation Analysis, ODOT admitted these: Ohio\u2019s desperate need for more public transit for workforce development and retention; five Ohio cities including Toledo already have from 26% to 50% \u201czero-car\u201d households, either by choice or economic circumstances; and Ohio\u2019s commute times are 11.6% less than the national average and Northwest Ohio\u2019s commute times are 9.1% lower than the state average. Unnecessarily widening a highway is counter-intuitive to every finding.<\/li>\n<li>Despite these self-identified concerns, ODOT allocates only 1% of its annual sky-high budget on public transit. Their 2024-25 budget of $11.5 billion allowed only $123.6 million for public transit for the biennium.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It is especially galling to recognize these wasted resources while Toledo Public Schools lays off scores of employees, Sylvania Schools makes up short-falls with a substantial levy planned for the May ballot, both the City of Toledo and Lucas County are tapping into reserve funds to meet day-to-day expenses, potholes shower all surface roadways (many in that condition for years), defunded libraries cut hours, and citizens face ever-increasing costs for life\u2019s necessities.<\/p>\n<p>This article is number four of five that La Prensa, Inc. has published and that are written by Peggy Daly-Masternak, the Coordinator for the I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition, where she discusses the impacts of this expansion. If you or someone you know lives in this area, or you want to know more about this expansion, please feel free to contact Peggy Daly-Masternak or consider joining the I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition by sending an email with your contact information (email address, postal address, and phone) to <a href=\"mailto:i.475group@gmail.com\">i.475group@gmail.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-15.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-13197 alignright\" src=\"http:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-15-300x172.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"172\" srcset=\"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-15-300x172.jpg 300w, https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-15.jpg 700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Barrios de Toledo bajo amenaza,\u00a0<\/strong><strong>Parte IV<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Por Peggy Daly-Masternak, Coordinadora de la Coalici\u00f3n de Vecindarios de la I-475<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>M\u00e1s all\u00e1 de las cargas para los residentes cercanos.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Este es el cuarto art\u00edculo de una serie de cinco publicados. Si los art\u00edculos anteriores no le inspiraron a oponerse al plan de expansi\u00f3n de la I-475, quiz\u00e1s este art\u00edculo, con m\u00e1s detalles, le afecte a usted y a todos los contribuyentes afectados por este despilfarro. Porque, la verdad es que, gran parte de los datos del Departamento de Transporte de Ohio (ODOT) desmiente la necesidad de esta expansi\u00f3n y tiene costos prohibitivos.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Detalles del plan:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>La innecesaria expansi\u00f3n planificada de la I-475, seg\u00fan se inform\u00f3 recientemente, cuesta $226,5 millones de d\u00f3lares, y se neg\u00f3 cualquier financiaci\u00f3n a los activos esenciales.<\/li>\n<li>Cualquier d\u00eda, hay y habr\u00e1 decenas de miles de personas en esta peligrosa zona vial: es decir, ni\u00f1os en escuelas y guarder\u00edas, trabajadores en comercios y oficinas, personas mayores en viviendas y centros de vida asistida, pacientes en centros m\u00e9dicos y personas que utilizan activamente parques, espacios comunitarios y lugares de culto cercanos, todo dentro del \u00e1rea del proyecto del ODOT.<\/li>\n<li>El ODOT alega razones de congesti\u00f3n y seguridad para justificar este proyecto, ambas pueden ser refutadas por sus propios datos o por los que reporta a la Administraci\u00f3n Federal de Carreteras (FHWA). La FHWA compila una &#8220;Base de Datos de Cuellos de Botella en el Transporte de Carga.&#8221; En 2024, las demoras promedio reportadas fueron inferiores a 1.5 minutos en el tramo del proyecto de la I-475, lo que demuestra que no hay congesti\u00f3n. Si un conductor pisa el freno en hora punta aqu\u00ed, lo estar\u00eda haciendo en cualquier ciudad del pa\u00eds. Quienes han vivido y experimentado la verdadera congesti\u00f3n en Nueva York, Chicago, Los \u00c1ngeles o cualquier otro lugar se r\u00eden a carcajadas del mito de ODOT sobre la congesti\u00f3n en la I-475.<\/li>\n<li>En cuanto a seguridad, seg\u00fan las m\u00e9tricas del ingeniero consultor de ODOT, tanto las muertes como las lesiones aumentar\u00e1n con la ampliaci\u00f3n, potencialmente hasta un 17 %. La Coalici\u00f3n de Vecindarios de la I-475 cree que las personas son m\u00e1s importantes que la propiedad. Cualquier aumento en las muertes o lesiones hace que este proyecto sea inaceptable.<\/li>\n<li>Para facilitar la ampliaci\u00f3n, se destruir\u00e1n y reconstruir\u00e1n los diez puentes vehiculares que atraviesan este proyecto. Cada puente ha sido rehabilitado o reconstruido en los \u00faltimos veinte a\u00f1os, y la mayor parte de la construcci\u00f3n se ha realizado en los \u00faltimos 10 a\u00f1os, con un costo de millones de d\u00f3lares. ODOT sab\u00eda desde el principio que la ampliaci\u00f3n estaba planeada y, aun as\u00ed, decidi\u00f3 malgastar los recursos de los contribuyentes.<\/li>\n<li>Adem\u00e1s, Norfolk Southern Railroad, una corporaci\u00f3n privada responsable del desastre de East Palestine, Ohio, recibir\u00e1 un nuevo puente a expensas de los contribuyentes. Reemplazar\u00e1 el puente met\u00e1lico gris que cruza la autopista entre Holland-Sylvania Road y el intercambio de la US-23. Seg\u00fan informaron los consultores de ODOT, se trata de un puente de una sola v\u00eda, que generalmente se usa dos veces al mes. A partir de agosto de 2024, esta ampliaci\u00f3n costar\u00e1 a los contribuyentes, como m\u00ednimo, 18,1 millones de d\u00f3lares, con recientes aumentos de costos no especificados.<\/li>\n<li>Durante seis a\u00f1os, ODOT ha dejado a los residentes del vecindario en la estacada, sin identificar a qui\u00e9n pertenece la propiedad ni cu\u00e1nto se les cobrar\u00e1 por la ampliaci\u00f3n. La admisi\u00f3n m\u00e1s cercana de ODOT, declarada en una audiencia conjunta en noviembre de 2024 ante el Ayuntamiento de Toledo y los comisionados del condado de Lucas, fue que &#8220;hasta 30&#8221; propietarios privados perder\u00e1n &#8220;franjas de hasta 3 metros&#8221; de su propiedad, todo por un proyecto de ampliaci\u00f3n innecesario.<\/li>\n<li>ODOT report\u00f3 los dos mayores gastos en agosto de 2024, con un total de 94 millones de d\u00f3lares para la ampliaci\u00f3n del puente y 37,5 millones de d\u00f3lares para los muros de contenci\u00f3n. En conjunto, esto representa el 66% de los \u00faltimos costos detallados reportados, que entonces ascend\u00edan a $217,5 millones (excluyendo los costos de adquisici\u00f3n y dise\u00f1o de propiedades privadas). Desde entonces, los costos de construcci\u00f3n reportados han aumentado a ese cuarto de bill\u00f3n de d\u00f3lares.<\/li>\n<li>Si el ODOT se mantuviera sustancialmente dentro de la traza actual de la carretera y reconstruyera la plataforma existente, las ampliaciones de puentes ser\u00edan innecesarias. El costo de los muros de contenci\u00f3n ser\u00eda mucho menor, si es que lo hubiera. Quiz\u00e1s se podr\u00edan dejar los muros ac\u00fasticos existentes. Esto requerir\u00eda mucho menos pavimento (el tercer gasto m\u00e1s costoso, con $23,3 millones) y evitar\u00eda la expropiaci\u00f3n de propiedades privadas.<\/li>\n<li>Actualmente, su cronograma de construcci\u00f3n es de 4,5 a\u00f1os, desde la primavera de 2028 hasta el oto\u00f1o de 2032. Esto causar\u00e1 da\u00f1os a\u00fan mayores tanto a los residentes como a los conductores. La congesti\u00f3n vehicular por la construcci\u00f3n concentrar\u00e1 cantidades extremas de contaminantes provenientes de veh\u00edculos con el motor en marcha, adem\u00e1s de ruido, polvo y perturbaciones adicionales a la propiedad debido a la construcci\u00f3n, todo lo cual afectar\u00e1 a las personas cercanas. En su An\u00e1lisis Estrat\u00e9gico de Transporte Estatal de 2025, el ODOT admiti\u00f3 lo siguiente: la urgente necesidad de Ohio de m\u00e1s transporte p\u00fablico para el desarrollo y la retenci\u00f3n de la fuerza laboral; cinco ciudades de Ohio, incluida Toledo, ya tienen entre un 26 % y un 50 % de hogares sin autom\u00f3vil, ya sea por elecci\u00f3n propia o por circunstancias econ\u00f3micas; y los tiempos de viaje de Ohio son un 11.6 % inferiores al promedio nacional y los del noroeste de Ohio son un 9.1 % inferiores al promedio estatal. Ampliar innecesariamente una carretera es contradictorio con todos los hallazgos.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A pesar de estas conclusiones, el Departamento de Transporte de Ohio (ODOT) asigna solo el 1% de su alt\u00edsimo presupuesto anual al transporte p\u00fablico. Su presupuesto para 2024-25, de 11.500 millones de d\u00f3lares, solo permiti\u00f3 destinar 123,6 millones de d\u00f3lares al transporte p\u00fablico durante el bienio.<\/p>\n<p>Es especialmente irritante reconocer este desperdicio de recursos mientras las Escuelas P\u00fablicas de Toledo despiden a decenas de empleados, las Escuelas de Sylvania compensan el d\u00e9ficit con un importante impuesto previsto para las elecciones de mayo, tanto la ciudad de Toledo como el condado de Lucas recurren a fondos de reserva para cubrir los gastos diarios, los baches inundan todas las carreteras (muchas en ese estado durante a\u00f1os), las bibliotecas, sin fondos, reducen su horario y los ciudadanos se enfrentan a costos cada vez mayores para cubrir las necesidades b\u00e1sicas.<\/p>\n<p>Este art\u00edculo es el n\u00famero cuatro de cinco que La Prensa, Inc. ha publicado, escrito por Peggy Daly-Masternak, coordinadora de la Coalici\u00f3n de Vecindarios de la I-475, donde analiza los impactos de esta expansi\u00f3n. Si usted o alguien que conoce vive en esta \u00e1rea, o desea saber m\u00e1s sobre esta expansi\u00f3n, no dude en comunicarse con Peggy Daly-Masternak o considere unirse a la Coalici\u00f3n de Vecindarios I-475 enviando un correo electr\u00f3nico con su informaci\u00f3n de contacto (direcci\u00f3n de correo electr\u00f3nico, direcci\u00f3n postal y tel\u00e9fono) a i.475group@gmail.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Peggy Daly-Masternak, Coordinator for the I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition Beyond burdens to nearby residents. This is the fourth article of a series of five published, that if the earlier articles did not inspire you to oppose the I-475 expansion plan, perhaps this article, with more plan details will affect you and every taxpayer in this<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13196,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_rtcl_gb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[302],"class_list":["post-13312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"aioseo_notices":[],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",700,294,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",700,294,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",700,294,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-300x126.jpg",300,126,true],"large":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",640,269,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",700,294,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",700,294,false],"rtcl-gallery":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16.jpg",700,294,false],"rtcl-thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-320x240.jpg",320,240,true],"rtcl-gallery-thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-150x105.jpg",150,105,true],"psacp-medium":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-500x294.jpg",500,294,true],"rpwe-thumbnail":["https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Neighborhoods-under-threat-by-Peggy-D-16-45x45.jpg",45,45,true]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"LaPrensa Newspaper","author_link":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/author\/laprensa\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/category\/articles\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Articles<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"By Peggy Daly-Masternak, Coordinator for the I-475 Neighborhoods Coalition Beyond burdens to nearby residents. This is the fourth article of a series of five published, that if the earlier articles did not inspire you to oppose the I-475 expansion plan, perhaps this article, with more plan details will affect you and every taxpayer in this","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13312"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13312\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13313,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13312\/revisions\/13313"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13312"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/laprensanewspaper.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=13312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}