If voters pass two taxes related to an interchange project in Warrenton at the August election, the engineering portion of the work can begin immediately.The Warrenton board of aldermen unanimously approved a professional services contract with engineering firm Crawford, Murphy & Tilly at the July 19 meeting. The deal will pay CMT $1,323,021.34 to design and do the engineering work for the interchange.The deal is fully contingent on voters passing the sales taxes. The deal allows CMT to get a jump start on the project.“Should the sales tax pass on Aug. 2, they would be able to start immediately,” said Terri Thorn, Warrenton Director of Operations.The board had no comments or objections to the engineering contract.In June, the board unanimously approved an ordinance placing two half-cent sales taxes on the Aug. 2 ballot. If passed, the propositions would fund construction of an interchange west of Warrenton and future economic development via two half-cent sales taxes.The first tax would expire once the city has paid the debt from construction of the proposed interchange.The second half-cent tax would continue after construction is finished and remain in effect for two years, expiring when the city generates enough revenue from the ensuing economic development to replace the tax.Last August the board began plans to seek the second interchange. Officials stated they were concerned about traffic accidents causing lengthy shutdowns on Interstate 70, including one incident where a leaking anhydrous ammonia tank led to the closure of the Highway 47 overpass for several hours.If the city’s lone overpass was closed for an extended period, city officials fear residents and emergency responder agencies would encounter major travel issues.The closest overpasses are about four miles to the east at Stracks Church Road and five miles to the west at the Pendleton/Truxton interchange.In March 2014, a plan to establish a transportation development district (TDD) along I-70 with a 1-cent sales tax was defeated after citizens in the proposed district unanimously voted against it.The city sought the TDD and the sales tax to help secure funding for a second Warrenton interchange near the 191-mile marker, on the western edge of the city.The total cost of the new interchange was projected to be approximately $15 million. The proposal contemplated a cost-sharing arrangement, with the city responsible for half of that amount and the remaining coming from MoDOT.Crawford, Murphy & Tilly