Bids to open next week on Jackson's East Main extension

Next week the city of Jackson will begin advertising for bids on a two-phase project to extend East Main Street to the future interchange off Interstate 55.

Phase one of the $1.5 million extension project involves demolishing an existing house, clearing the land, excavating rock, inserting a water and sewer line and constructing a storm water detention basin.

Construction on the first phase is expected to begin at the end of May and is estimated to cost $900,000.

Jackson is responsible for extending East Main Street from the intersection of Oak Hill Road to the proposed intersection of Old Orchard Road -- approximately 1,950 feet of pavement.

The Missouri Department of Transportation will construct East Main Street from Old Orchard Road to the future interchange. Old Orchard Road will eventually serve as the outer road along I-55 to the Center Junction Interchange.

"By Thanksgiving, we should have everything out there to lay down a street," said Rodney Bollinger, Jackson public works director.

Bollinger said it was the city's goal to start work on phase one this year so the city's electric distribution department can begin constructing an electric transmission line to the Center Junction Interchange.

"There's going to be a lot of activity out there this summer," Bollinger said.

Phase two of Jackson's East Main Street extension project, which is scheduled for 2007, will include the concrete paving of a four-lane road and sidewalks. This phase is estimated at $600,000.

Several years ago the extension project was estimated to cost $1.2 million but the price has slowly gone up due to inflation and higher fuel costs, Bollinger said. Breaking a project into two or more phases also increases the price.

"If you do it all at once, it's cheaper," Bollinger said.

Jackson's reasoning for constructing the extension in two phases is to keep the city's options open for when the time comes to begin paving the road.

"Once we have something to hook the road up to, then we'll do the final pavement," said Jim Roach, city administrator. MoDOT has only completed preliminary design plans for the $8 million East Main interchange, meaning changes could be made before construction begins.

MoDOT project manager Andy Meyer said MoDOT will have final plans prepared by July and is on schedule to begin construction of the interchange.

"At the start of September, we should see dirt flying," he said. "We're really close, and it's pretty exciting."

Last August, Cape Girardeau voters approved a transportation sales-tax extension that promises $3.2 million to rebuild County Road 618 -- to be renamed LaSalle Avenue -- to I-55.

Cape Girardeau engineer Jay Stencel said the city has not selected an engineering firm to design LaSalle Avenue but expects to within the next month.

The interchange project on I-55 will include a five-lane East Main Street that will include two eastbound and two westbound lanes and a center turn lane. It will also have a dual left-turn lane at the interchange ramps. The new lanes will be constructed under I-55.

jfreeze@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 246