Access to Brown Street from East Exchange Street near the University of Akron campus will be closed for approximately four weeks beginning Monday, March 24. The construction work is part of the East Exchange Street improvement project, which is expected to be completed early in July.

From the west (downtown), the detour will: 

Turn right at Grant Street, left at East Thornton Street, right or left on Brown Street.

From the east (university area), the detour will:

Turn left at Grant Street, left at East Thornton Street, right or left on Brown Street.

the detour to access Brown Street, whose intersection with East Exchange Street will be closed
A map provided by the City of Akron shows the detour to access Brown Street, which will be closed at East Exchange Street for approximately four weeks beginning Monday, March 24. (Courtesy of the City of Akron)

Access to all residences and businesses on Brown Street will be maintained from the south, according to a news release from the City of Akron.

Also beginning Monday, March 24, the sidewalks between Sumner and Allyn streets (just east of the McDonald’s on East Exchange Street) will be under construction for about two weeks — that part of the project is expected to be finished by the middle of April. 

Pedestrian access to the businesses in the area will be maintained. Free parking is available on the side streets (Allyn and Sumner), and a parking garage for retail customers is available behind the businesses on East Exchange Street.

Access to Brown Street from East Exchange Street near the University of Akron will be closed starting Monday, March 24
Access to Brown Street from East Exchange Street across from the University of Akron will be closed starting Monday, March 24 for about four weeks as road construction continues. A detour on Grant Street will allow travelers to still access Brown Street, which will remain open. (Susan Zake / Signal Akron)

Contractors will then move east to complete the sidewalks between Allyn and Kling streets for the next two weeks, with work to finish by the end of April.

Access to Brown Street should be restored at the end of April.

Spicer Street access to close beginning of May

Access to Spicer Street from East Exchange Street will be closed for approximately four weeks starting in the beginning of May. The detour, the news release said, will be announced at a later date.

The  East Exchange Street project includes “full improvements” between Arc Drive and Fountain Street (to the east of state Route 8) including new pavement, curbs, sidewalks, bike lanes, street lighting, traffic signals, water main replacement, sewer reconstruction and landscaping, the release stated. 

“I know this construction has been difficult for some of our local businesses and University of Akron students,” said Akron Mayor Shammas Malik. “In the end, we will have a fully updated corridor along one of our main roadways and a critical part of the University of Akron campus that we can be proud of.”

Contractors will finish up aesthetic improvements such as street trees after roadway completion.

Editor-in-Chief (she/her)
Zake has deep roots in Northeast Ohio journalism. She was the managing editor for multimedia and special projects at the Akron Beacon Journal, where she began work as a staff photographer in 1986. Over a 20-year career, Zake worked in a variety of roles across departments that all help inform her current role as Signal Akron's editor in chief. Most recently, she was a journalism professor and student media adviser at Kent State University, where she worked with the next generation of journalists to understand public policy, environmental reporting, data and solutions reporting. Among her accomplishments was the launch of the Kent State NewsLab, an experiential and collaborative news commons that connects student reporters with outside professional partners.