The city of Warrenton has approved a $313,000 contract with engineering firm Crawford, Murphy & Tilly (CMT) to develop final plans for 2.5 miles of sidewalk along North Highway 47.The sidewalk will travel along the west side of Highway 47 from the Interstate 70 North Outer Road to Fairgrounds Road. From there it will travel along the east side of the highway to Hickory Lick Road.City leaders want the sidewalks to improve pedestrian safety along the highway. Installation along Highway 47 north of I-70 would create a nearly complete connection of pedestrian sidewalks from the north end of the city all the way to the south end.The Warrenton Board of Aldermen approved the contract with CMT Tuesday, Nov. 6. CMT previously was hired under a nearly $100,000 contract to do preliminary work on the project earlier this year. It also was the engineering firm for the new west I-70 interchange in Warrenton.Under the most recent contract, CMT will draft the route and layout for the sidewalks, along with safety features such as guardrails and other structural elements.The plans must be approved by the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT). Warrenton also hopes to get a cost-share agreement with the state to pay up to half the cost of the sidewalk project.If that cost-share agreement is approved, the cost of CMT’s engineering services would be included as part of the city’s share of the project, said City Administrator Terri Thorn.CMT also will prepare legal documents to help the city obtain right of way easements from property owners along Highway 47. Thorn said the city might hire a separate firm to actually acquire the rights of way.“This acquisition will have to follow all of the MoDOT right of way guidelines. It will be very intricate, it will be very drawn out, it will take some time,” Thorn told city aldermen during a Nov. 6 public meeting.She said there are about 30 pieces of property along the sidewalk route, and that acquiring right of way easements for all of them would be the longest portion of the project.During the engineering and construction process, CMT also would act as the project manager coordinating between the city, MoDOT, utility companies and the construction contractor involved in the project.Based on a cost estimate from CMT, about 60 percent of the engineering cost will come from the planning and design stages, before any construction work begins. About 40 percent of the cost will come from services and project management during construction.“If everything goes according to plan . . . preliminary plans would be submitted to (MoDOT) at the end of December this year,” Thorn said. “Right of way acquisition would be from August 2019 to November 2020. If we can complete that sooner, then that would speed the project up.”Assuming a conservative time line, Thorn said construction could begin in early 2021. That’s longer than what city leaders might have hoped, Thorn said, but MoDOT sets the pace with its requirements for the project.A preliminary report generated by CMT in June estimates the cost of the sidewalk project will be $1.7 million.

The city of Warrenton wants to build a sidewalk along 2 1/2 miles of Highway 47 from Interstate 70 to Hickory Lick Road.