NEELYVILLE — Residents of Neelyville and the surrounding area had the chance to voice their questions and concerns about the new Interstate 57 interchange coming to the town as well as the roundabout on Highway 160.
In the Neelyville High School cafeteria, attendees worked their way through several exhibits and posters showing the projected route of I-57 and its interchanges.
Present at the event were representatives of the Missouri Department of Transportation, consulting firm Crawford, Murphy and Tilly, and the Highway 67 Corporation. Jim Pickett, a project manager for MoDOT, said most residents are excited about the safety improvements and economic opportunity.
“I haven’t had a lot of concerns,” he noted. “The biggest question I get is ‘When is it coming?’”
Pickett highlighted the importance of making a safer transportation corridor over the existing Highway 67.
“We’re looking to put out the info we’ve been developing,” CMT project manager Andrew Schlichting remarked. “This is part of the long-range plan.”
The interchange at Neelyville constitutes parts of phases three and four of the I-57/Highway 67 expansion project. As with every major project, however, there can be some who feel like they are getting the short end of the stick.
Rickey Davidson and Bobby Dodd are farmers whose land will be bifurcated by the interstate. The pair said the route shifted from the original plan and now half of their fields will be cut off from critical irrigation pumps.
Pickett commented MoDOT had to adjust their plan to meet the Arkansas Department of Transportation I-57 interchange at the Missouri-Arkansas border. Davidson said they will need to mirror the pump system on the other side of the corridor.
“The pumps cost $40-45,000 each, not including the piping,” Dodd added.
Both expressed concerns over drainage issues due to the interstate being built over several ditches.
“It doesn’t make a lick of sense to me,” Davidson said.
Pickett said there are existing processes in place to ensure the farmers will be compensated for the new pumps promptly. The partners will also need to take circuitous routes around the interstate to transport equipment form one side to another.
“We’re looking at millions of dollars,” Davidson asserted.
Farmer Mike Smody echoed similar sentiments. The interchange will take some of his farmland and split his holdings.
“It’s going to make it a lot harder to get around,” he stated.
Nevertheless, Smody agreed the corridor will benefit the region overall.
“It will be a positive over time. It’ll seem like a negative at the time due to the change,” he said.
Resident Autumn Puckett had positive feelings about both the 160 roundabout and the interstate.
“It’ll definitely slow down traffic,” she said regarding the roundabout. “We’ve called MoDOT for 13 years to make this happen.”
She recounted stories of semi-trucks and other heavy vehicles driving quickly on the road and causing a hazard. Puckett said she is happy the interstate is coming through the area but is not excited about the traffic and construction in the meantime.
Neelyville High School teacher Shannon Davis and her husband Steve have been anticipating the arrival of the interstate for some time. They recalled building their home in 1993 and receiving a letter only four years later that the state was going to buy their land and home for I-57.
“We’re just in shock that it’s finally happening,” Shannon said.
“It’ll be a good thing. The highway (67) is way too busy,” Steve affirmed.
The couple noted they received an above-market offer for their home. Shannon remarked she will still teach at Neelyville.
“This is my home,” she assured.
Chairman for the Highway 67 Corporation Bill Robison said, “The traffic is getting such that the safety issue is definitely real.”
He added the safety improvements near Neelyville will be immense. Additionally, Robison sees the connecting of St. Louis to Little Rock as critical to the economic development of the region.
“That’s a needed corridor. It’s an important corridor for the Midwest,” he remarked.
While there is no anticipated completion date, Pickett said the leftover funding from the recently authorized $150 million will go towards the interchange at Neelyville.
“It will be a big safety improvement,” Robison concluded.