City officials said last week that Murray's proposed north-south corridor will most likely be built in a piecemeal fashion over a period of many years.
Mayor Lynn Pett said the planned roadway, designed to provide an alternate route to the west of congested State Street, will most likely be built without the large infusion of state funds officials had hoped for in order to make it possible to complete the project at one time.In early July, city officials put the price for the total project at $35 million. When fully completed, the proposed road will follow a path beginning at Main Street at 3300 South or 3900 South and ending on Cottonwood Street (266 West) at about 7200 South.
Pett estimated the chances of linking the project to upcoming I-15 reconstruction as less than 1 percent. City planners hoped they could portray the new road as a possible means of rerouting traffic during I-15 reconstruction and thereby entice the state to fund it, but Pett said it appears the state will not have funds available for the Murray project.
He said the project will take 10 to 20 years to complete.
The section most likely to be targeted first for construction will probably include the area along Vine Street to 5300 South, which cuts through the Old Murray Smelter site. It's also possible that some state funds might be used to improve intersections at 300 West and 4500 South streets and at 5300 South at I-15.
In a project newsletter mailed to area residents, Pett said another reason for proceeding in a step-by-step fashion is to reduce the impact of the roadway on area residents.
The newsletter also outlines a summary of the July 10 public information meeting on the project held at Murray High School. Of the approximately 300 residents attending the meeting, there were a variety of opinions, but those who most opposed the project seemed to be those residents most directly affected by it.
"The comments that were made most frequently by those who expressed opposition to the project were that the project would cause devaluation of their homes, loss of residents' back yards and increase the amount of traffic, crime and noise in the area," the newsletter said.
Some residents at the July meeting also suggested developing 300 West Street as a north-south corridor through the city. City planners are studying that option.