AUBURN, Ind. (WANE) – After years of working to alleviate major safety and traffic concerns on West Fifteenth Street in Auburn, officials are one step closer to resolving the issue.

Semi-trailer trucks loading and unloading at DeKalb Metal Finishing have disrupted traffic on West Fifteenth Street as the company’s loading docks face the street. The disruption often blocks the eastbound lane, allowing only one travel lane for traffic traveling east and west.

In a press release sent to WANE 15, the City of Auburn said it has agreed to sell nearly three acres off the north end of Memorial Park to DeKalb Metal Finishing for future relocation of the company’s truck docks.

The sale of the land will directly benefit one of Auburn’s oldest “Neighborhood Parks” as proceeds will go directly toward major renovations to the park. It is unknown what renovations will be done to Memorial Park at this time.

While WANE 15 was in Auburn Wednesday, neighbors said they had no idea the City of Auburn had this in the works. Neighbors also told WANE 15 that the fence of one of the two baseball fields at Memorial Park was taken down two weeks ago.

The sale of the park land was approved unanimously by the Auburn Park Board on Aug. 22 and will be on the Auburn Common Council’s agenda on Sept. 5 for the first reading and then again on Sept. 19.

The renovations will be part of a larger project, as the city has chosen to dedicate $2 million to renovations as part of OCRA’s Hoosier Enduring Legacy Program grant.