The city of Warrenton was recently given approval from the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) to begin obtaining easements for sidewalk construction along North Highway 47.
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The city of Warrenton was recently given approval from the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) to begin obtaining easements for sidewalk construction along North Highway 47.
This is the latest step in the lengthy process of getting a sidewalk installed along Highway 47 from the Interstate 70 North Service Road to Hickory Lick Road. Area residents and city leaders have been pushing for a sidewalk to improve pedestrian safety along the northern stretch of the state highway in Warrenton.
Construction of the 2 1/2 miles of sidewalk will be jointly funded by the city of Warrenton and MoDOT, which has agreed to provide $1.4 million for the project. But the MoDOT funding has come with stipulations of how the project is done, including getting clearance before acquiring easements for construction.
Warrenton Director of Operations Brandie Walters said that approval came in late November.
“We got approval (Nov. 25) from MoDOT that we can proceed with obtaining all of our easements for North (Highway) 47,” Walters said.
City officials said they were glad to receive approval, but that actually acquiring the easements will still be a significant task.
The sidewalk is planned to be built along one side of Highway 47. It will travel along the west side of the highway from the North Service Road to Fairgrounds Road, then switch to the east side of the highway from Fairgrounds Road to Hickory Lick Road.
Before any construction can start, the city needs to acquire easements from dozens of private property owners along the route, granting permission for the construction. This process can sometimes be lengthy with so many property owners involved.
Walters said the city is currently drafting the easement documents and has planned for a year to obtain all the easements.
Actual construction of the sidewalks is expected to begin in spring 2021.
Ward 2 Alderman Gary Auch said it’s good the city continues to move forward on the project in getting MoDOT’s blessing to obtain the easements.
“It’s a benchmark in the project. That was one of the things we had to get before we can do anything else,” Auch commented.
