Ceremony marks the reopening of Clough Pike

Long awaited, the rerouting of Clough Pike in Batavia has reached an official completion.

A short ceremony was held last week to mark the official opening of the new portion of Clough Pike, which enters Batavia on the west end of town near College Drive.

“It’s a great honor to be here this morning,” said Batavia Mayor John Thebout. “We’re hoping very much it will bring growth and development to the village, county and township. This project had its beginning in the 32 corridor study several years ago. While there was great interest in the project, it stalled due to lack of funding and right of way acquisition. The newly-located Clough Pike eliminates a major safety issue, by closing an unneeded and dangerous railroad crossing. It also opens up unused land, and we believe it will have a significant impact on business.”

The project has been years on the drawing board, and even longer in the hopes of local developers who have looked for an access point to the village. The new entrance is served by a traffic light that is expected to alleviate some of the congestion common near the center of Batavia.

"We welcome you all to this special event. The Clough Pike project is one the village has long desired to see completed," said Batavia Administrator Bob Stewart.

The project marks the end of a mated pair of projects that began a few years ago with the Beechwood Road extension. That project, which joined a portion of Union Township to the city of Milford, created a new railroad crossing. The local deal to create that new crossing? The elimination of another, less desirable railroad crossing, which in this case was the Clough Pike crossing in Batavia.

"It was a pleasure working with the village on this project," said Clermont County Engineer Pat Manger. "This is a linchpin to the other half of the project. The Beechwood Road extension two years ago, we were able to eliminate this crossing for the railroad tracks, which allowed the Beechwood extension to cross the railroad tracks there. This accomplished much on many fronts. This was a very-well orchestrated project which showed the collaboration we're known for in Clermont County. That cooperation is what I'm most proud of."