Mentor Avenue Resurfacing Underway Near Great Lakes Mall

Crews began tearing up Mentor Avenue on Aug. 24 along the commercial stretch that feeds Great Lakes Mall — a $2.57 million resurfacing project that will narrow one of Lake County's busiest shopping corridors to one lane in each direction through the end of October, weather permitting.

The work zone runs from about 500 feet west of Hopkins Road to the Painesville Township line, putting it squarely in front of the mall at 7850 Mentor Ave. and the surrounding retail and service businesses that depend on drive-by traffic for late-summer and back-to-school revenue. That timing raises a pointed question: did the city sequence this project to protect the commercial corridor that anchors Mentor's tax base, or did businesses learn about lane closures the same way drivers did — from a message board on the road?

Mentor City Council approved the contract with Geauga Highway Co. at its July 7 meeting. Most work is scheduled from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., keeping daytime disruption to a minimum, though one-lane restrictions remain in effect during construction hours. Traffic message boards along Mentor Avenue are providing updates on changing patterns, and the city is urging drivers to allow extra travel time through the work zone.

The scope goes well beyond a new coat of asphalt. The project includes full-depth pavement repairs, curb and utility casting repairs, and new radar detection equipment at traffic signals — upgrades that should improve both road quality and signal responsiveness once the work is finished.

The Mentor Avenue corridor carries outsized fiscal weight. The city collects a 2% municipal income tax on earnings within its borders, and the combined sales tax rate in Mentor stands at 7.25% — 5.75% state plus 1.5% county, with no city sales tax layered on top. Retailers along the corridor generate a share of that revenue that makes construction-season access more than a convenience issue.

Great Lakes Mall is owned by Washington Prime Group. General Manager Eric Roxbury can be reached at [email protected] or 440-255-8932. The Herald was unable to confirm what direct coordination, if any, the city conducted with mall management or adjacent businesses before work began.

This phase is the first of two. Resurfacing of the remaining portion of Mentor Avenue to the Willoughby line is planned for 2027, pending state budget approval.

City Manager Kenneth J. Filipiak oversees day-to-day municipal operations under Mentor's council-manager form of government, where the seven-member City Council — led by President Janet A. Dowling — serves as the legislative body.

Residents and business owners with questions or concerns about the project can contact the Engineering & Building Department at 440-974-5785 or [email protected], or the Public Works Department at 440-974-5781 or [email protected].

The construction window is expected to close by the end of October. Whether the corridor's merchants reach that finish line with their fall revenue intact depends on how well the city manages what happens between now and then — and whether one lane is enough to keep shoppers coming through the door.