The county is picking up half the cost, the township is chipping in $300,000 and the parks $100,000 for the new Pepper Pike traffic signal. The county is using funds from the University Pointe TIF — tax increment financing — to fund their portion. Commissioner Don Dixon told the Journal-News, “it’s a good funding source and it’s a good project and it makes it safe for our residents.”
“It is a safety issue out there, people trying to get in and out of the park, it’s starting to generate more traffic and it’s really become kind of an accident waiting to happen so to speak,” Dixon said. “I think it’s money well spent.”
County Engineer Greg Wilkens said the new traffic signal is necessary because increased traffic is anticipated from the new submarine memorial and the VOA combined. He said the price isn’t just for the signal, road improvements are also involved.
Township Trustee Mark Welch told the Journal-News they are pleased the county is helping fund the project.
“We have a vested interest to get this thing up and running because of the amenity, which is USS Cincinnati, it’s going to be a wonderful, beautiful testament to peace through strength which happened in the Cold War,” he said. “We wanted to get it in and honestly we were glad the county said they would be a part of it.”
Slated to open in May 2026, the $9.5 million war memorial will feature walk-through spaces of the submarine’s skeleton frame and historical, educational kiosks on the historical vessel — which was launched in 1977 and decommissioned in 1996 — and its global impact on patrolling international waters.
Wilkens said the traffic light will take longer, “it takes almost a year to get the mast arm poles, there’s a long lead time on all that signal stuff.” Installation is scheduled for 2027.
Katy Ely, communications manager for MetroParks of Butler County, said the new entrance has been on the Voice of America MetroPark master plan for several years. She said the township and MetroParks received state funding for the new driveway and township Administrator Lisa Brown suggested a joint funding venture for the traffic light.
“The new entrance and exit will help make the back half of Voice of America MetroPark more successful, will help improve traffic flow for tournaments held at the Voice of America MetroPark Athletic Complex, and will be a great addition to the USS Cincinnati Memorial,” she said.
Michael D. Clark contributed to this report.
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