Orange barrels in Akron have essentially been part of the downtown aesthetic for some time, but a two-year project is nearing completion and those barrels will be moved uptown.

Akron mayor Dan Horrigan touched on the end of phase one of the massive downtown construction project, and is looking at what will come during phase two. Main Street, which had been out of order to two-lane traffic from the Bounce Innovation Hub towards Lock 3, is now open to drivers, as well as between Bowery and Route 18.

Horrigan says phase two will head northward to Perkins Street. He says the city is working with the businesses along Main Street that were not only affected by the construction, but the pandemic as well.