If your property overlaps with the areas the I-69 Ohio River Crossing project is looking to utilize, the team wants to hear from you.
“We had a man tell us that in his backyard, there was a rare type of wildflower,” Amber Schaudt, the I-69 project public outreach representative said at a Henderson Lion’s Club meeting Tuesday afternoon. “We won’t know about these things if you don’t tell us.”
While the I-69 ORX project is still in the planning and “environmental” evaluation stage, the staff members for the project want citizens to voice any concerns or suggestions throughout the process.
“If you know of a historic landmark or something of a rare wildflower, tell us,” Schaudt said. “We want to hear from our constituents and the community.”
Schaudt said the project recently sent out letters to property owners saying researchers will possibly be on their property collecting information for the potential routes.
This summer, the project planners will be holding open houses to discuss the list of “alternatives,” or different routes the project might take. There are currently five alternatives, which project director Marshall Carrier said each have their own pros and cons.
“We need to find an affordable solution to address long-term cross-river mobility,” Carrier said at the meeting. “It is a tremendous challenge to decide based on environmental impacts.”
The I-69 project was first brought up in 2004, Carrier said, but lack of funding stalled the project.
“We don’t want to end up back where we were in ‘04,” he said. “We don’t want to repeat that process.”
The current timeline for the I-69 project expects an environmental study to take two to three years, with an “alternative” picked and a Draft Environmental Impact Statement published in 2018. In the fall of 2019, the project expects a record of decision.
Because the project is still looking at environmental impacts, Carrier said he cannot determine exact costs or confirm tolling booths will be established.
“We have to get through the environmental discussion before we can get to the financial,” he said. His presentation slides indicated tolling is a likely possibility to offset the costs of the bridge and subsequent road improvements.
Currently, Carrier said Indiana has invested $2 billion into the project, while Kentucky, with interstate infrastructure already established, has invested $200 million.
Two-hundred and sixty miles of roadway are undergoing improvements to meet interstate standards in both Indiana and Kentucky.
“Tolling, from a bi-state perspective, is more than likely going to be part of our financial discussion,” Carrier said. “It takes $1 billion to complete just a small portion of the project ... there are tremendous costs involved with design.”
As the process continues, another part of the discussion will be the fate of the twin US 41 bridges.
“If we put tolling booths on only the I-69 bridge and not the U.S 41 bridge, then people will just take U.S. 41,” Carrier said. “That will be something we consider. Over time, the numbers for the money certainly do add up.”
The open houses for community input and data on the project will be held 5 to 7 p.m., July 31 at the Crescent Room at Milestones in Evansville and 5 to 7 p.m., Aug. 1. at Henderson Community College.