Plans moving ahead for Grant Street, MSP roads

Officials are moving ahead with two joint Jefferson City and Cole County roadway projects linked to new developments on the east side of the Capital City.

Grant Street leading into Ellis-Porter Riverside Park is scheduled to get a facelift to improve its appearance and ADA accessibility while roadwork on the Missouri State Penitentiary land will set up for development there.

The Public Works and Planning Committee approved funding for both projects during Thursday's meeting. It will go before the full City Council before work can begin.

The Cole County Commission expressed support for the projects during its May 4 meeting.

The MSP project will receive city and county funding through each entity's sales tax. Jefferson City Parks and Cole County will share the cost to work on Grant Street.

The Grant Street project will install sidewalks, a few retaining walls and a central island for beautification at the park entrance. It will also smooth out sections of the road and address a spot that has a tendency to build up storm water.

The Grant Street work is estimated to cost $650,000 with $550,000 coming from Cole County. The county and city share costs for projects through each entity's half-cent sales tax.

The other $100,000 will come from parks funds.

Work will be done across the full length of Grant Street, starting at East McCarty Street and up to the park pool.

The project came up as a way to offer pedestrian access to the park - especially now that the Riverside Amphitheater is starting shows. However, the city used it as an opportunity to get other work done on the road, City Engineer David Bange said.

For instance, the plan includes putting up several small retaining walls next to the sidewalk on the west side of the street. The walls will also mean cutting back brush and cleaning up the side of the road.

The sidewalk will all be on city property, but staff is also working with area property owners since the work will disrupt some driveways, Bange said.

The city also plans to smooth out the incline where East McCarty Street turns into Grant Street, the intersections with Lake and Hough streets, and the entrance into the park.

This work will also make the sidewalk that will cross these intersections ADA compliant.

Road maintenance also includes reworking the part of Grant Street around Hough Street to allow for better storm water drainage, Bange said, since water pools in several spots there.

Other beautification efforts would mean widening Grant Street as it goes into the park and installing a central island. The island would be used for trees and plants.

The $100,000 contributed from Parks funds would go toward the island section since it is on park property.

Bange said the city still needs to finish planning work and conversations with area property owners before construction can begin. The hope, he said, is to start late summer.

Building the sidewalk, he said, shouldn't disrupt traffic flow along the road, but the city would need to close those intersections while working on them.

Bange said the city will work around events at Riverside Amphitheater when scheduling the work that would disrupt traffic flow.

He estimated the project would take 10-12 weeks once work starts.

The committee also approved a $4.5 million project focused around MSP.

The city will contribute $2 million, and the county will contribute $1 million to the project. The city received an Economic Development Administration grant for $1.5 million.

Bange said the scheduled work will fulfill the city's obligation in its agreement with the state when the city took possession of the property for redevelopment.

The project will build a road off Chestnut Street onto the property, which would connect to one coming in from Lafayette Street, a sidewalk/trail along Chestnut Street, four pad sites for future development and an underground water detention site.

The road off Chestnut Street was added to the original plan when the City Council reallocated funds from Clark and Dunklin streets to the project.

Redevelopment plans for the area also include a hotel, conference center and expo center.

Ryan Moehlman, city attorney, said plans for the redevelopment are moving forward with the team of St. Louis area companies selected for the project, but it's behind-the-scenes steps that aren't visible to the general public.

The city is also in conversations with the state about the full scope of the project, which includes spaces for retail and housing as well.

In other business, the committee approved:

Plans for a contactless fare system for JeffTran and Handi Wheels. The program would allow riders to purchase tickets on their phones, but riders could still purchase paper tickets.

A request for abatement and demolition supplemental funds for six properties considered by the city to be the "worse dangerous buildings within the city." Staff hopes addressing these will start a larger push for more funding to address dangerous properties around the city.

It also held a public comment period related to a potential increase to the sewer rates. Nobody was present to comment. Another public comment period will be held during the Jefferson City Council meeting June 7.