Marion still hopeful for input on ArDOT plans for Military Road

Marion still hopeful for input on ArDOT plans for Military Road

Fogleman wants ‘ conversation about what we

can and can’t do’

news@theeveningtimes.com

Marion officials are optimistic the state highway department will work with them on widening Military Road, but have options they can still pursue on their own even if the state goes ahead with five-laning the roadway.

The state is planning to widen the road to five lanes from the intersection of I55 to the railroad tracks where Military Road meets Highway 77, however, the city has asked them to scale it back to three lanes so they can add landscaped center medians and decorative lighting to calm traffic near the school.

Mayor Frank Fogleman met with state highway officials earlier this month and said the meeting was cordial, but the state is noncommittal and has not drawn up any design plans yet.

“If they allow us, we would like to have the islands,” Fogleman said. “If they tell us they are going five lanes, then I guess we will just have to open up a conversation about what we can and can’t do. This is all hypothetical, but I will tell you that we would still like to landscape the shoulder along the road if there is space enough to do it.”

Fogleman said the state will be constricted by its own set of regulations because the money to do the project comes from the federal government.

However, at a minimum, Fogleman said the state might be able to at least put in the rough end electrical and water conduits and fixtures while they are widening the roadway so Marion could add its own landscaping and lighting.

“Of course we would pay for that,” Fogleman said.

“But they responded yes, which was certainly positive. I was glad to hear that.” Fogleman said the main reason they favor three lanes is because it would have more of a calming effect on traffic by the school.

Children cross the highway on their way to and from school during the school year and also to use the gymnasium.

“Personally, I think that as a public we tend to drive at a higher rate of speed on a multi-lane road than we do on a one lane,” Fogleman said. “So there is a safety issue of kids coming and going.”

Another option which came up during the discussion is the state’s willingness to turn the road over to Marion which would make it a city street and not a state highway. Marion could then do whatever it wanted to with it at its own expense because it would no longer be owned by the state.

“They have made such an offer,” Fogleman said. “I guess if you consider alternatives, it is one we could consider.”

Fogleman is also hoping to be able to save the city annex building. The water department is located inside the annex and if the road is widened it would lose its street parking.

According to Fogleman, there is about 15 feet that the state could use on the north side of Military Road by city hall to reposition the road.

“I think I stepped off 15 feet,” Fogleman said. “So if they took 11 or 12 feet of that, that’s almost the width of a lane. It would still leave nearly a sidewalk’s length there beside city hall and they could pick up a lane.”

While they would still likely have to relocate the water department, the annex could still be used for office space.

“For the public in and out, I would think we would have to move it,” Fogleman said. “But the type of thing we do in there — mostly bookkeeping — that doesn’t have the traffic volume that the water department does. I would think we could keep that. We do have parking in the back for employees.”

The widening project has been budgeted to start sometime in 2018.

By Mark Randall