The Nagel Road interchange on Interstate 90 in Avon is scheduled to officially open on Thursday, Dec. 20 at 10 a.m.

Avon Mayor Jim Smith and other dignitaries will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Attendees are asked to enter the event from the north, from the intersection of Chester Road and Nagel Road.

"After everyone clears out (from the ceremony), the road will be open to traffic," a source at the mayor's office said.

An invitation-only reception will follow at Petitti Garden Center in Avon following the ceremony.

Do you think the Nagel Road interchange will help ease traffic at the Crocker Road interchange? Tell us in the comments. 

On Dec. 5, Smith announced the interchange would open by the end of the month.

Reports have been coming from the mayor’s office with regularity, including the opening of three roads last week, near the Interchange.

The groundbreaking for the interchange was Sept. 14, 2011. The concept was first discussed 16 years ago.

Smith expects state and local officials, the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) and NOACA officials to be present and speak as well.

The project, 16 years in the making, is opening approximately nine months ahead of schedule. It involved a drawn-out battle with city officials in Cuyahoga County, many of whom initially opposed the project.

In a show of cooperation, Westlake allowed Avon Road to be re-opened at the county line to accomodate work being done on Avon Road near the interchange.

“Don and (City Engineer) Rob (Knopf) have done a great job,” Smith told Patch last week. He also cited cooperation with ODOT and Mosser Construction with keeping the project ahead of schedule.