{"id":19396,"date":"2012-05-21T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2012-05-21T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/natso.com\/odot-to-issue-rfp-to-commercialize-non-interstate-rest-areas\/"},"modified":"2024-05-15T18:46:56","modified_gmt":"2024-05-15T18:46:56","slug":"odot-to-issue-rfp-to-commercialize-non-interstate-rest-areas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.natso.com\/odot-to-issue-rfp-to-commercialize-non-interstate-rest-areas\/","title":{"rendered":"ODOT to Issue RFP to Commercialize Non-Interstate Rest Areas"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
Ira Wexler\/NATSO<\/p>\n
The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) last week issued a request for information (RFI) seeking input on an upcoming proposal to commercialize non-interstate rest areas across the state.<\/p>\n
In its RFI, ODOT said it would seek to construct service plazas at 26 non-interstate rest areas to provide fuel, food, lodging and other travel-related services. ODOT plans to have all of the plazas developed, financed and operated through a lease agreement.<\/p>\n
In an interview with the “Cleveland Plain Dealer,” 黑料社区President and CEO Lisa Mullings said ODOT’s proposal to construct commercial rest areas along non-interstate routes represents yet another ill-conceived attempt by the state to compete with small-town businesses, threatening jobs and local tax dollars, as a way to fix state budget shortfalls.<\/p>\n
“State financial budget problems are not a burden that should be transferred to local business owners and local communities,” Mullings said. “Yet this is exactly what the Ohio Department of Transportation is planning to do.”<\/p>\n