Jeff Johnson has been selling cars and trucks from the same narrow lot at 100 S. Russell St. for 19 years. For eight of those years, a plan to rebuild Russell has been cooking.
So most of this decade, Johnson and his four employees at JJ's Used Cars have been wondering if they'll have to give up their parking lot for a bigger road. More to the point, they've been wondering if they'll have to close up shop.
Of course, he isn't alone. The Russell project's draft environmental impact statement emerged last month, and it's a document that's the culmination of eight years and $3 million - for 1 1/2 miles of road. The clock is ticking on a public comment period, which closes Oct. 20.
The EIS points to a “preferred alternative” for that stretch between West Broadway and Mount Avenue, but despite all the years and dollars, folks like Johnson don't prefer the “preferred.” Some are fighting for another, “neighborhood-friendly” option.
The EIS calls for a sometimes four-, sometimes five-lane road with traffic signals at intersections and undercrossings for bicycles and pedestrians. The citizens' alternative, 3 Plus for Russell, would be a three-, sometimes four-lane road with roundabouts - and undercrossings for bicycles and pedestrians.
With an EIS in full swing, however, a new road of any kind is a long way off. And as the undertaking creeps along, the $40 million pot of money to build it covers less road every year. Already, a city official estimates the money will build just half the project.
Getting any version of a whole new road on the ground means finding a way to pay big bucks, and that's an obvious challenge. Getting a road the community and engineers can agree to live with for the next generation may pose an even bigger one.
The whole thing started back when Third and Russell streets landed on the list of priorities in Missoula's 1996 Long Range Transportation Plan. Chief Administrative Officer Bruce Bender said the city tackled Third Street in 1998 and nearly finished an environmental assessment there. The next step was road construction, but folks at City Hall had a nasty surprise waiting.
When they jumped on the Russell Street project, Bender said an official at the Montana Department of Transportation put the kibosh on building Third Street, saying that plan needed to be rolled into one for Russell. The roads shared an intersection and their designs were too closely connected, the argument went.
“We went, ‘What?' That just blew our minds. We were about ready to finish it,” Bender said.
And that wasn't all. Doing an environmental assessment isn't nearly as cumbersome as doing an EIS, but Bender said the MDT directed the city to complete an EIS instead.
“It had a huge impact in terms of cost,” he said.
So the project ballooned, and then stalled. Skillings Connolly, a firm hired to complete the EIS, faltered and the city didn't renew its contract. In 2006, the city hired HKM Engineering to finish the job.
Over the years, public dollars flowed to engineering firms. Before MDT put the brakes on Third Street, WGM Group earned $216,780, according to the Public Works Department. That was back in 2001. Skillings Connolly was paid $2.7 million - without finishing the work. HKM has a contract for $577,808 and has earned $441,031 so far.
The years passed, and among citizens, unrest grew. Some Missoulians had served on an advisory committee in 2001, and they wondered what had happened to their recommendations. (They'd wanted more traffic to move - but not faster. They wanted good routes for walkers and bikers. Even back then, they wanted a road that respected the neighborhood.) But the city dismissed the committee, and members say they weren't kept in the loop.
“I would be confused as to why you (city officials) wouldn't keep the public involved the whole way through,” said Nancy Wilson, a former member of the advisory group. “I don't understand why you wouldn't want the committee engaged the whole way through.”
Public Works director Steve King said the committee fulfilled its role early on and the “preferred alternative” reflects its wishes. It has the sidewalks, bike lanes and undercrossings people want, he said.
King also said members of the public are welcome at the table, but it's difficult to keep them informed during the “technical analysis.” The city sent out newsletters periodically to keep people informed, he said.
“Does that mean the public is welcome in every meeting, every staff meeting, every technical meeting? We don't have that much transparency or we wouldn't get anything done,” King said.
At some point during the project, though, communicating with the public became too costly. A 2005 letter from Skillings Connolly to Steve King about cutting expenses says this, “Per your request, I eliminated all of the public involvement activities.”
King said he doesn't remember the context of the request. However, he said along the way, members of the public would ask the consultants about unrealistic options, like a monorail, for argument's sake. The consultant would investigate and send the city a big bill, he said. So he said the city needed to put a stop to that practice.
Earlier this year, neighbors and former committee members grew impatient to get back in the loop. Some wondered if their suggestions had survived. When a couple of neighbors tried to talk with officials, though, they say they hit a wall.
“There was a moment in spring when we were trying to open a conversation with the city and state and consultants. We felt somewhat stymied in that (effort),” said John Wolverton, a neighbor and advocate of the citizens' alternative. “They were sounding very entrenched in their product.”
That product is in the draft EIS, a plan that can get built on Russell and Third streets. But millions of dollars and nearly a decade later, Missoula sits at a crossroads. Despite huge investments of time and public money, the option deemed satisfactory to engineers remains unsatisfactory to many others.
“I don't think they need to put another highway through town,” said Al Hintz, who works at JJ's.
“There's already too much traffic,” said Paula Lester, who walks the road a couple times a day and has nearly been hit doing so.
“I think five lanes would be insane,” said Patty Kent, who works nearby at the Western Montana Mental Health Center.
Countered the Public Works director, “It isn't a popularity contest.”
So where to go from here? CAO Bender wants to wrap up the EIS as quickly as possible. He'd like the community to support the “preferred alternative” in the draft EIS so the city can at least build from West Broadway to Third Street. Then, he said, the city can work with neighbors on exactly what to build from Third Street on down. There isn't federal money for that portion, anyway.
More time will undoubtedly mean more cost increases, but some citizens aren't inclined to hurry the project. Some who have attended public meetings on the project aren't convinced the general public wants five lanes even to Third Street. Others say those who attend meetings don't represent all of Missoula.
In this case, it seems, time isn't of the essence - but good information is. And that's why citizens following the project aren't afraid to wait a while longer to make sure there's a plan the community backs.
“I don't see why the hurry at this point. We've already waited eight years. Let's get it right,” Wilson said.
Reporter Keila Szpaller can be reached at 523-5262 or at keila.szpaller@missoulian.com.
Come one, come all - and comment
That's what city communications director Ginny Merriam wants people to do at the Sept. 24 meeting about Russell and Third streets. Merriam said public comment is an integral part of an environmental impact statement.
“We're hoping to see a lot of people at the meeting, and we're hoping to hear from people with written comments and e-mails,” Merriam said. “It's very important for the decisionmaking process.”
The meeting: The city of Missoula invites all citizens to comment on a proposal to reconstruct Russell and Third streets “to address safety and congestion problems and better meet the needs of drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians.”
The discussion starts at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Franklin School, 1910 S. 10th St. W. To view the draft environmental impact statement, go to www.mdt.mt.gov/pubinvolve/eis_ea.shtml. For more information, contact Gregg Wood at 552-6093.
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TOM BURDITT wrote on Sep 21, 2008 8:41 PM:
" SKILLINGS - CONNOLLY WAS PAID ALMOST 3 MILLION DOLLARS FOR WORK THAT WASN'T EVEN COMPLETED ? AND THEY WERE FIRED ? WHAT KIND OF DEAL IS THIS ? "
Rob Tabish wrote on Sep 22, 2008 1:25 PM:
" It is fairly obvious that this issue is suffering from the same illness that every other community effort in Missoula suffers from. There are too many cooks in the kitchen trying to make decisions, when in reality only one intelligent voice really needs to be heard. This is a question of efficiency, not aesthetics. There are only a ridiculously few passages across the Clark Fork for the amount of traffic that needs to get over it. The better the system is for making traffic flow work, the happier the majority of people who use this system will be. Unfortunately, just as with the "Broadway Diet" and Malfunction Junction, every whinny NIMBY obstructionist is given a voice in how to proceed. Just fix the road and get on with it! Over-priced used car lots and wandering pedestrians will adapt. "
Jon_W wrote on Sep 21, 2008 6:53 AM: