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THE RICH BEAUTY OF THE TOPOGRAPHY IN THIS OLD RIVER TOWN IS UNDENIABLE. CLOSER UP, IT CAN PROVIDE A MESSIER VIEW. CITY LEADERSHIP IS POISED TO BITE THE BULLET. THEY GATHERED ALONG THE CLOSED WESTBOUND LANES TO DECLARE IT’LL COST AT LEAST $17 MILLION AND POTENTIALLY TAKE THE NEXT TWO YEARS. PART OF WHAT DRIVES THEIR DECISION IS THE POSSIBILITY OF SOMEBODY GETTING KILLED BY A SUDDEN COLUMBIA PARKWAY LANDSLIDE. >> AND I WON’T JUST STAND FOR A BAND-AID THAT FIXES IT AND HOPES THAT WE CAN KICK THIS DOWN TO THE NEXT ADMINISTRATION. WE WILL FIX IT ON OUR WATCH. JOHN: THE SO-CALLED FIX INVOLVES MANY UNKNOWNS. THERE COULD BE A SERIES OF NEW WALLS, PRESUMABLY HIGHER. THERE COULD BE SOIL STAPLING. THAT WOULD INVOLVE A RIG TO DRILL A SERIES OF TUNNELS AIMING FOR BEDROCK. THE HEAD OF THE HILLSIDE TRUST DESCRIBES IT AS AN EFFECTIVE PROCESS. >> THEY’LL FILL IT WITH REBAR THEN PUMP IN CONCRETE. AND TYPICALLY THERE’S A LITTLE BIT OF A KNOB OR STUB THAT STICKS OUT OVER THE GRADE OF THE HILL. JOHN: THEN CONCRETE OVER A REBAR MAT TO CEMENT PORTIONS OF THE HILLSIDE. TO ACCOMPLISH ALL THIS, COLUMBIA PARKWAY WILL BE REDUCED TO ONE LANE INBOUND, ONE LANE OUTBOUND. A TWO-YEAR TRAFFIC FLOW DISRUPTION. AMY MURRAY DRIVES IT DAILY. >> WE COULD HAVE A TRAGEDY. IF SOMEONE WAS COMING BY HERE, A MOTORCYCLE AND THEY HIT AT THE RIGHT TIME, YOU KNOW, IT’S NOT SAFE. JOHN: IT’S NOT AN END-TO-END REPAIR. WE’RE TALKING FROM AROUND BAINS PLACE TO TORRENCE, UNDER TWO MILES. AN OVERVIEW FROM OUR DRONE PROVIDES A SENSE OF THE HIGH COST. NOT MERELY THE MINIMUM $17 MILLION. BUT, THE $19 MILLION BUDGET DEFICIT LAWMAKERS WILL NEED TO CLOSE BY SUMMER. WILL THE STATE COUGH UP SOME CASH? >> >> NO. NOT AT THIS TIME. WE ARE SEEKING EMERGENCY FUNDS. WE’VE APPLIED THROUGH FEMA. JOHN: SO, THE SOURCE OF $17 MILLION IS NOT YET KNOWN. NOR IS THE RECONFIGURATION OF RIVERSIDE DRIVE, WHICH COMMUTERS USE AS AN ALTERNATE ROUTE. CITY LEADERS PLAN TO HAVE A BETTER HANDLE ON THE SPECIFICS IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS. LIVE ALONG COLUMBIA PARKWAY, JOHN LONDON, WLWT NEWS

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The rich beauty of the topography in an old river town like Cincinnati is undeniable.Closer up, it can provide a messier view.City leadership is poised to tackle the effects of recent landslides along a portion of Columbia Parkway with a major repair.They admit the scope of the cost and timeframe is difficult to pinpoint with specificity.But, they say it's time to bite the bullet and estimated a repair job that could take up to two years and cost at least $17 million.There is a landslide legacy along the vital east-west parkway where this season's freeze-thaw cycle has been particularly acute and muddy.There have been more than a half-dozen serious slides that have closed lanes since the first of the year.Traffic engineers have identified a dozen active landslides from Bains Place to Torrence.The latest earth encroachment onto westbound pavement was just east of Kemper a few days ago.It's where city leaders vowed on Wednesday that there would be no more patchwork."I feel confident the engineers who work for this city can figure out the solution," said Eric Russo who met us at the Eden Park overlook. He is the executive director of The Hillside Trust and told us a two-year time frame for repair sounds about right."Columbia Parkway is probably the poster child for this problem, but exists throughout a lot of places in Cincinnati," said Russo. "And so, whatever happens here could possibly be a model for other areas."He spoke right after the mayor, manager and engineersgathered along the closed westbound lanes to declare it would cost at least $17 million and potentially take the next two years, although they hope to get the work done in eighteen months.Part of what drives their decision is the possibility of somebody getting killed by a sudden Columbia Parkway landslide."And I won't just stand for a band-aid that fixes it and hopes that we can kick this down to the next administration," said Mayor John Cranley in a forceful, emphatic tone. "We will fix it on our watch."The so-called "fix" involves many unknowns.There could be a series of new walls, presumably higher.There could also be soil stapling or nailing.That would involve a rig to drill a series of tunnels that would aim for bedrock.Russo described it as an effective process."They'll fill it with rebar then pump in concrete," he explained. "And typically there's a little bit of a knob or stub that sticks out over the grade of the hill."Concrete would then be poured over a rebar mat to cement portions of the hillside in place and make them more stable.To accomplish all this, Columbia Parkway would be reduced to one lane inbound and one lane outbound, a two-year traffic flow disruption.At times, the entire Parkway would be blocked in that area.Amy Murray drives it daily.There is no appetite for more borrowed time."As a council member, it has worried me the last month," she stated. "It's a clear and present danger. I mean, it is very dangerous, I think, to be on Columbia Parkway when we see these slides. We could have a tragedy. If someone was coming by here, a motorcycle, and they hit at the right time, you know, it's not safe."It's worth pointing out the work would not be an end-to-end repair.The new series of walls would be constructed along a stretch from around Bains Place to Torrence, a distance of under two miles.The cost of a minimum of $17 million comes at a time when there is a $19 million budget deficit that lawmakers will need to close by summer.When asked if the state intends to cough up some cash to help the city with the financial lift, Joe Vogel who is the director ofDOTE answered bluntly "No. Not at this time. We are seeking emergency funds. We've applied through FEMA."It is unclear what reconfiguring Riverside Drive involves, but that's also on the table.To stabilize just the one spot east of Kemper will run $750,000.That amount was approved by City Council this afternoon.Engineers and lawmakers intend to have a more detailed plan in place in a couple of weeks.In the Spring of 2019, that is what a vital east-west corridor has inherited."Strip the hillsides with vegetation, quarry rock out of it, build on the hillsides, in many cases inappropriately," observed Russo. "This is now the legacy we have to live with for current and future generations of the city."