Marion wants input into ArDOT plans for Military Road expansion

Marion wants input into ArDOT plans for Military Road expansion

Fogleman: City has ‘ need to know what they are going to do,’ but not getting ‘ a lot of commitment’ from state officials

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Arkansas Department of Transportation officials say they are open to Marion’s ideas about widening Military Road, but are noncommittal as to what the final plans will look like.

Mayor Frank Fogleman said he met with ArDOT to discuss their plans and share the city’s desire to partner with them on the project and offer their ideas on what they would like to see the roadway become.

“It was a very cordial meeting,” Fogleman said.

“There was a lot of give and take. There wasn’t a lot of commitment.”

The state is proposing to widen the road to five lanes from the intersection of I55 to the railroad tracks where Military Road meets Highway 77.

The project has been budgeted to start in 2018, but the state has not given any timeline yet for when actual work will begin.

Fogleman said he asked ArDOT to let them know as soon as possible when they plan to start the project because the city will have to make its own plans to accommodate the construction.

The project could result in the city losing the city annex building which is home to the Chamber of Commerce and Water Department. The “Brick Building,” which is located on the corner of Military Road and Hwy. 77, will most likely have to be demolished to make way for a right hand turn lane.

“I impressed upon them our need to know what they are going to do as quickly as possible because we may lose the water department,” Fogleman said. “It may even impact city hall. So the sooner we know, the sooner we can act.”

Fogleman said he also discussed the city’s desire for the state to scale the project back to three lanes instead of five, and to allow the city to pay for landscaped medians and decorative lighting by the school to slow traffic down and limit the impact on the city’s main thoroughfare.

“They were open minded to it,” Fogleman said.

“They didn’t say yes and they didn’t say no.”

Fogleman said the state also indicated that they might be able to turn the road over to the city making it a city street which they would then be responsible for maintaining.

“In the final analysis, the state asked us to write a letter expressing what we wanted and what our plans were.” Fogleman said. “We’re working on writing that letter. Many of you have seen the plans for landscaping in the school

zone to calm traffic, and crosswalks and landscaping on the islands. So we will stick to that plan.”

By Mark Randall