SCRANTON, PA. – City of Scranton officials and project partners celebrated the completion of the second streetscape project this year, this time gathering in the 600-700 block of Lackawanna Avenue. The $2.2 million project improves a major entrance to downtown Scranton by restoring a dilapidated retaining wall, installing new sidewalks, creating a much safer location for a County of Lackawanna Transit Systems (COLTS) bus stop, and adding trees and period lighting.
“Our Lackawanna Avenue streetscape project improves one of the busiest and most prominent entrances to our downtown,” Mayor Paige G. Cognetti said. “These ongoing streetscape improvements are making it safer to walk and drive throughout Scranton. Public investment alongside private investment is boosting our economic development and strengthening our future.”
The Lackawanna Avenue streetscape project was engineered by Reilly Associates, with paving completed by American Asphalt and construction led by Multiscape. Work began in November 2025 and continued through September 2026. Along with major safety improvements, the project restored a retaining wall near the historic Radisson Lackawanna Station Hotel Scranton. Improvements begin at the exit of the President Biden Expressway and wrap past both new and longstanding businesses to the intersection of Adams Avenue and Lackawanna Avenue.
The total project estimate, per the 2026 Capital Budget, was $2.2 million, funded by $1.65 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, a Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development grant for $351,000, and a Pennsylvania Local Share Account (LSA) grant for $261,681.
In addition to work in the 600 and 700 block of Lackawanna Avenue, in November 2025, crews from Kriger Construction removed the median in the 500 block as part of a separate paving contract for $171,836, paid with Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds.
Scranton’s streetscape projects focus on improving driver and pedestrian safety, primarily in downtown Scranton as well as projects along Cedar Avenue in South Scranton and Main Avenue in West Scranton. Officials celebrated the completion of the $700,000 Cedar Avenue project this June, and the West Scranton gateway project is substantially completed.
Multiple crews have been working on projects all summer, with work downtown totaling an estimated $20.4 million. Throughout several locations, work included sealing dangerous underground sidewalk vaults; installing new curbs, sidewalks, and accessible ramps; adding period lighting; and moving utility cables into underground conduit. Projects are being completed through a combination of ARPA funds, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) Multimodal grants, state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grants, LSA grants, and more.
The transformation of downtown Scranton will continue with plans to replace unnecessary traffic signals with stop signs and converting some one-way roads to two-way streets.
ABOUT THE CITY OF SCRANTON: Incorporated in 1866, the City of Scranton has a population of approximately 76,000 residents and is the sixth-largest municipality in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Scranton City Hall is located at 340 N. Washington Ave., Scranton, PA 18503. Residents requiring services should visit www.scrantonpa.gov
ABOUT MAYOR PAIGE G. COGNETTI: Paige G. Cognetti was sworn in as the 36th Mayor of Scranton in January 2020 and took her third Oath of Office in January 2026. Her administration is focused on public safety, fiscal discipline, driving economic growth, upgrading infrastructure, government transparency and efficiency, and improving residents’ overall quality of life.
Scranton Celebrates Completion of Lackawanna Avenue Streetscape | Press Release
Last modified: October 13, 2026
