CHESAPEAKE — A start date for the Rockwood project has been set.

Construction is scheduled to begin on March 17, according to Kathleen Fuller, public information officer for the Ohio Department of Transportation District 9.

“This is good news to me,” Chesapeake Mayor Dick Gilpin said. “Everybody has been waiting and wondering what would happen to the road. With a little bit of visibility it looks like we are getting something done.”

Handling the construction is Shelly and Sands of Columbus, whose $984,496 bid was approximately $300,000 below the state’s estimate of $1.3 million.

Six bids were opened by ODOT in September. Other bidders were Alan Stone of Cutler, Becdir of Berlin Center, DGM Inc. of Beaver, Suburban Maintenance and Construction of North Royalton and RC Construction of Cutler.

For more than two years the village has struggled with the slippage of the hill onto Rockwood Avenue, at times shutting the street down to a single lane. The project, that had originally been expected to cost $1.8 million, will be similar to a tie-back done recently by ODOT in Scioto County instead of a retaining wall.

The project is expected to be completed by mid-summer.