Jackson board must decide on MoDOT's U.S. 61 offer

Editor's note: The following story has been edited to correct one of the street names involved in the project.

A street improvement project talked about for more than 20 years may finally be in the works for uptown Jackson.

On June 20, city administrator Jim Roach gave an update to the Jackson Board of Aldermen on a proposed project to improve U.S. 61 where it runs through uptown Jackson. Since a decision to enter into a cost-sharing agreement with the Missouri Department of Transportation is required by the next board meeting, a vote was added to the agenda.

Roach told the board the current traffic situation in uptown Jackson was the No. 1 traffic problem in the city and the No. 1 problem in the community. While the project still has some unknowns, board members expressed a favorable attitude toward the concept presented by Roach.

The current concept includes widening the turning radius at the corner of U.S. 61 and High Street, widening Hope Street to the south, installing a light at the intersection of Main and Hope Streets and making Court Street and Barton Street one-way streets.

Jackson Mayor Barbara Lohr said previous attempts at designing a roundabout to surround the courthouse were never feasible because too much of the courthouse lawn would be taken away. The flow of traffic would "resemble more of a 'blockabout,'" she said.

Parking would also be affected. Lohr said spaces on both sides of Main Street in front of the mural would have to be used for lanes instead. Some residential parking would also be lost on the end of High Street north of the courthouse square. Roach said the loss of some on-street parking could possibly be offset by building a parking lot nearby.

Because several county government properties and the post office would be affected by widening streets, Roach said, MoDOT would need to meet with representatives from those entities to arrange plans.

Lohr said the project would create some inconveniences but that the city is ready to make the improvements.

The board questioned Roach whether the offer of a cost-sharing agreement with MoDOT would still good later if no vote was made during the next meeting. Roach said no offer would be likely in the foreseeable future. He also said the concept presented to them would have the least effect on residents.

Lohr said that several years ago MoDOT would have been responsible for the total cost of the project, but now that so much time has passed and the traffic problem remains, the city is willing to cover part of it.

The board will vote on the agreement July 5.

eragan@semissourian.com

243-6635

Pertinent addresses:

Barton Street, Jackson, MO

Court Street, Jackson, MO

High Street, Jackson, MO

Highway 61, Jackson, MO

Main Street, Jackson, MO