The Jefferson city council at its Jan. 13 meeting approved a $1.14 million sidewalk project on the west side of the city. The project, and its cost, grew by 1,100 feet and $94,000 from the time it was first proposed.
The initial project called for the construction of new sidewalks on the north side of W. Lincoln Way west of Grimmell Rd, and around the curve to the south on the west side of the road to Westwood Drive. On Westwood, new sidewalk would be constructed on the north side of the road from Grimmell Rd to Briarwood Bend. A sidewalk would also be constructed on the west side of Grimmell Rd between Westwood and Lincoln Way to complete a loop. A leg to the west on the north side of Westwood would extend to Briarwood Bend. The initial purpose was to create a safe loop for pedestrians with limited street crossings.
City engineer Jim Leiding of Bolton & Menk told the council that at the public meeting held about the project last fall, there was discussion about the safety of the children who live on the streets south of Westwood Dr. The Greene County Schools bus makes one stop on the south side of Westwood Dr for students who live in the 60 homes on Hawthorne and Hickory Lanes and on Rushridge Rd.
The project includes a leg to Briarwood Bend because pedestrian sidewalks are required for builders in that development. When all those lots are developed, there will be a west loop for walkers. Cost of the Briarwood portion is $50,000, or 4.3 percent of the total project cost.
Leiding said Bolton & Menk’s recommendation was to build on both sides of Westwood Drive to minimize pedestrian crossings.
The cost of the project is included in a debt issuance not to exceed $12 million previously approved by the council. The debt will fund an overlay on McKinley St and part of the cost of a new firetruck.
Council member Chad Sloan argued against the project, noting that 180 homes in the east portion of Jefferson have drainage issues and will be expected to pay for a drainage project, while the city plans to pay for sidewalks elsewhere.
Council member Darren Jackson said that while the city could assess property owners for the needed drainage work, he’s not in favor of that.
Sloan went on to suggest other streets that lack sidewalks, asking what the council’s response to sidewalk requests would be. Jackson said there’s precedent for the city building this sidewalk, as the city paid for sidewalk work to assure safety on both sides of S. Elm St from Lincoln Way to Greene County Middle School.
A motion for the $1.14 million project past on a 4-1 vote, with Sloan casting the dissenting vote. According to Leiding, design will continue with a goal of letting bids in June with construction to start in late summer or early fall. The project will be completed in 2027.
