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Tuesday, 01 September 2009 |
More than a hundred people packed the Bryant Central Fire Department training room on Roya Lane late Monday to hear about a proposed roadway that would connect Interstate 30 to the Saline County Airport. James Shuffield is one of many Bryant residents to question city leaders about possible plans to build a roadway from Interstate 30 to the Saline County Airport. The gathering took place late Monday at the Bryant Central Fire Department. More than 100 residents attended.
After nearly two hours of discussion — often heated — Mayor Larry Mitchell said he hopes residents can differentiate truth from fiction.
“There is a lot of information out there, and some of it is not accurate,” he said. “Hopefully, we can alleviate anyone’s fears tonight and tell you what is really going on. There is no set plan, no set routes, no purchase of a single right-of-way, and anyone that tells you different — it is not true. This entire thing is extremely preliminary right now. The engineering firm will look at this to see if this is even feasible.”
At an Aug. 13 City Council meeting, aldermen approved Jacobs Engineering Firm in Little Rock to prepare a scope of work and schedule of fees for possible future road projects. The projects could include major roadway connections from Interstate 30 to the airport. Councilmen stated that the approval of the Jacobs scope will not cost the city anything at this time because no contract has been signed.
“There are no dollars or commitment from us,” Councilman Steve Gladden said. “This is just to hear their proposals.”
Many Bryant residents told the mayor and councilmen in attendance Monday night that their concern is that a new road will be built through heavily populated neighborhoods. Mitchell said there are numerous different routes the city has suggested to Jacobs, including a route through a portion of Alexander or even from Alcoa Road. He also said there could be a number of other ideas Jacobs could present “that we didn’t even think about.”
State Sen. Shane Broadway, D-Bryant, representing the Saline County Economic Development Corp., said the idea behind the possible roadway is to entice industrial or manufacturing businesses to move into Bryant around the airport. He said as these businesses move into the city, hundreds and possibly thousands of new jobs could be created in Saline County.
“In Saline County we know 62 percent of residents drive to another county to work,” he said. “In Bryant it is probably closer to 80 percent. Our focus with SCEDC is to first keep the jobs we have here and also to create new jobs locally so people will spend money locally. If we lower the amount of people leaving our county to go to work by even 6 to 10 percent, it would tremendously impact the tax revenue in a positive way for residents.”
Broadway said 1,200 acres at the airport is for the SCEDC to help bring in those businesses and that several large corporations have visited the area with interest. He noted, however, that all of businesses asked whether there could be a different access route into the airport.
“That area is valuable because of the location, the workforce and much more,” Broadway said. “They don’t want to come down a four-lane highway with several stoplights, which is Reynolds Road. They want something directly off I-30, and that is where these discussions first began. But everything is very preliminary. What we want to show [businesses] in the future is a possible area for possible routes.”
Broadway said there “is nothing set in stone” and even if the city decides not to build a new route, the SCEDC will continue to market the area around the airport. He said it is important to have options and opportunities to show the businesses, but that he understands the cause and concern of the residents. Broadway also said a possible four-lane divided highway was “never really in discussion” and that Metroplan “had to” include that in its plans.
“You elect us for future planning,” Mitchell added. “That is what we are trying to do. There are a lot of things we are attempting to keep this city moving forward.”
The mayor said the goal is to get routes from “point A to point B” and though one route is a straight line from I-30 to the airport, that is just one of several ideas. He said there are numerous routes to consider.
Resident Rodger Poole asked if there is a time frame and any set funding for the project. Mitchell responded that there is no cost or a time frame set for any plans or projects, because everything is still in the preliminary stages. The mayor also acknowledge that the money would have to come from the general revenue fund, if any is spent, but that the funding currently “is almost down to nothing at this time.”
Resident James Shuffield told the mayor the whole idea has upset people who moved into their neighborhoods for peace and tranquility. He said that fact should be considered in regard to the project, along with the possibility of a new roadway lowering home property values.
“It could also cause some litigation tying it up in the courts and even could ultimately doom the project,” Shuffield said.
Another resident added that people “aren’t here for the airport or the county dump,” but at least three other residents defended the idea of a new roadway. A retired Air Force woman warned that the city will continue to grow regardless of residents opinions.
“The only way to stop the growth would be to make this a nasty, disgusting city that nobody would want to move to,” she said. “As long as you have a nice community, people will continue to move here.”
“We want to see growth and jobs,” resident Terry Ward said, “but we want it without the expense of so many residents.”
A former science teacher said the the problem that residents face now in the city is extreme traffic congestion “because there is only one main road” in Bryant. Another resident asked about documents they received on the perceived roadway plan, but Bryant Planning Coordinator LaVenia Jones said the planning commission “has never seen it” and Mitchell too said the council has not seen the information either.
The mayor said Jacobs will not be prepared to present any scope of work to the council until the Oct. 8 meeting at Boswell Municipal Complex, 210 SW Third St. in Bryant.
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