The very idea of homes being taken to allow a north-south connector for the South County motorists to reach the mid-counties had scores Webster Groves residents in arms on Wednesday.
A public presentation of the Impact Statement for South County Connector (EIA called on residents to City Hall on Wednesday night. The EIA has undergone a similar presentation earlier this month at the Affton White Center -Rodgers Community in Afton.
The EIS is conducted between the St. Louis County Department of Highways and Traffic, the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA. The intent of the EIS is to find a way to relieve traffic congestion in some counties in middle areas and create a more direct route from south St. Louis County Mid-St. Louis County.
Five alternative routes are displayed in an area that is usually limited by road from Manchester in the north, Hanley Road and Station Road in Laclede Interstate 44 en route to the west, Murdoch and Watson Avenue to the south and Big Bend Boulevard and River Des Peres to the east. The study area includes parts of Maplewood, Webster Groves, Shrewsbury and portions of south and southwest of the city of St. Louis.
What has affected neighboring Webster Groves is that four of the alternative map shows a small part of the northeast section of town that includes the Tuxedo Boulevard, Key West Avenue, Lane and Barbara Jean Kuhlman Court, all of which are between the North Laclede Station Road and Big Bend Boulevard, which is used for alignments of new roads. (The detail that accompanies PDF proposed routes.
Figure Tori lives in the 900 block of Avenida Providencia, only three houses away from an alternative route that includes Laclede Station Road North, and she sees no reason for any of the proposed plans.
"The traffic backup twice a day during peak hours," he said. "Each cycle of traffic (traffic light wash for an hour, so do not think that an hour of the morning and one afternoon is enough to justify putting in a eight-lane highway through our neighborhood" .
The need for a connector of the South County Figure is lost, who said he has lived near North Station Road Laclede for six years and is used for traffic.
"If you choose to live where you live, you have to take into account the traffic," he said. "I mean, we live in Webster Groves, we are central, and people living in south county, should have known when they moved there."
Although there is no firm plan and no federal money, state or local authority has to build any of the plans shown are not comfortable with any potential acquisitions.
"Once they come out with a decision of our houses are marked," he said. "It will effect our property values, we can sell our homes. But we're looking at all our options at this point because with two small children can not live a highway. "
Mayor Gerry Welch Webster Groves urged residents to fill out comment cards at the meeting and the other residents at the meeting to make their views known to officials of the county road.
"What's here (in the plan map as a possibility, it is here," said Welch. "What they have the opportunity, and they have to do is participate in this project, contributing their opinions.'s Why who called this meeting and that is what we need.'s Federal Regulations (EIA study and is a federal project and I am almost asking citizens to respond. "
Welch said he did not know if the alignments of new roads and improvements are necessary, but said that there are alternatives that exist that do not pass through residential neighborhoods.
"Our people need to say it is a preferred route for them," said Welch. "If they hear that from many people who could become reality."
Welch said his family's home in Pennsylvania was taken by a highway project "and I really, really sympathize with these people, with all the uncertainty here. My heart is with them and they have to respond. "
Shannon Haxel Shrewsbury resident of the 7400 block of Weil Avenue, asked county officials during the meeting how he could proceed with the sale of your home when the threat of road construction looming over his head.
"We had our house on the market for a month and we had a sample," said Haxel. "It's obviously a very traveled road, but it is a great neighborhood with small houses starting to be sold before all this. I do not know whether we will be able to move from our first house. We have been there for five years and our plan was to be there five years and move, but if I were a potential buyer would not buy my house, because you do not know if you'll have a four-lane ahead of him. "
John Hicks, Transport Development Specialist with the St. Louis County Department of Highways and Traffic, said they were still "at the beginning of the process" and that no concrete plans have been finalized yet.
To Haxel, which was not much consolation.
"I grew up in Bridgeton, right at the airport, and when I was growing up, bought some neighborhoods and is completely eliminated," said Haxel. "My grandmother's house is destroyed and everything was bought, and not even finish the expansion of the airport, so all the families and threw out half the community is gone."
Haxel said traffic patterns could change again due to fuel costs and fewer drivers "and we have these major highways and large are not used, even."
"Is it even worth all this," he said. "I drive to work everyday in Clayton, so I stop at lots of lights and it takes me ten to 12 minutes to get to work. It's really not that bad."
Hicks said residents in affected areas have no cause for alarm at this time because no plan has been completed and funds are not "logged" for any project. In addition, the study should be completed and approved by all agencies involved before any project could be eligible for federal and state funds. If this occurs, construction could begin at any time in the next five to 10 years, according to a schedule published by the county.
After the meeting, Hicks said that as the EIA process "is moving forward that (the residents have the assurances they need."
"We are forced to seek multiple options and multiple impacts, including impacts of the floodplain," said Hicks. "Now I will not say a (plan is better than the other, but we have to identify the impacts."
EIS shows an alternate plan a route from Laclede Station Road north of Deer Creek, along the Deer Creek Center in Maplewood, however, that the plan would take the road through the floodplain. The area is near the Tuxedo / Key West / Kuhlman area.
Other plans call for extensive use of the streets of Shrewsbury, including Shrewsbury, Landsdowne, Murdoch and Weil avenues to connect to Watson road or river Des Peres Avenue.
"When we do this detailed analysis, we can return to the public with accurate figures on what the relative advantages and disadvantages of each of the alternatives," said Hicks.
Resident can see alternative plans and make comments here .
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