Appalachian Grant Project Completion

McCONNELSVILLE, Ohio – The summer of 2026 brought plenty of traffic congestion to the Village of McConnelsville as construction for the Appalachian Grant projects were underway. 

McConnelsville Village Administrator Tim Louis discussed the extent of the projects and how they will benefit the village.

“The village of McConnelsville was lucky enough to get two different Appalachian Grant Projects,” Louis said. “One is the Streetscape Project, which was supposed to connect the streetscape into the downtown. We got some new sidewalks, planter beds, trees, tree lawns, things of that nature. The other project was the Riverfront Park Project.”

Project accomplishments include: new street curbs, raised pedestrian crossings, improved lighting and upgraded sidewalks to a new riverfront park that offers a scenic vantage point of the river and its adjacent community of Malta. 

“And the Riverfront Park Project is still about three-to-four weeks out from being completed,” Louis said. “But the Streetscape Project should be completed here within the next 5-to-7 days. We’ve had our downtown tore up for some time now and now we’re going to probably move to Riverside Drive.”

The celebration of the downtown construction completion, along with all of its associated traffic congestion, unfortunately is now being overshadowed by the State Route 60 lane closures, located a few blocks upriver, along Riverside Drive.