JEFFERSON CITY — Members of the Missouri Highway Commission decided on Thursday to postpone the Hwy. 63 project decision until its December meeting after input from Osage County residents.

Central District Engineer Machelle Watkins told commissioners that the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) received numerous suggestions for safety improvements along the Hwy. 63 corridor, specifically from Hwy. 50 to the Maries River Bridge.

She recommended that the commission approve the location and design of the proposed project as presented at the Aug. 21 public hearing, with the addition of a north access to Hwy. 63, J-turn access at the north and mid-section of the new alignment, and extension of the southbound dual lane to the existing climbing lane south of the Maries River.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the public input to the project,” said Watkins. “They really showed up to share, took time out of their days and schedules to have meaningful conversations with us, and then followed up in writing what some of their concerns are. The recommendation that we bring forward to you today really works to try and incorporate the theme of those concerns.”

The public meeting in Westphalia on Aug. 21 included more than 240 attendees. A total of 274 responses were submitted to MoDOT during the public comment period.

“We did respond to each and every one of those comments,” said Watkins. “We indicated that we were giving consideration to some of these items; certainly, we need your approval to move forward with them, but we were giving additional consideration to those items. Some questions and concerns were about detailed design, and we really can’t answer those until we’re able to move forward and develop more detailed design.”

Commission Chairman Warren K. Erdman noted there were some amendments to the proposal based on citizen input. “So, this alignment then would lead to more detailed engineering,” he said, adding that subsequently, the commission would have to approve it and then solicit bids.  “We’ve got quite a few steps to go here.”

Osage County Western District Commissioner Dale Logan, who lives in Westphalia, was among several area residents to offer comment.

“Our biggest concern is we know this is coming, whether it’s coming now or later,” he said. “We all accept that. We understand progress and we embrace that, but it is so important to do it right, and, at this juncture, it is not being done right enough.”

Erdman agreed that some interesting questions were raised, of which he was not aware, and thanked the people who brought some details to the commission’s attention. “I think they’re legitimate questions,” he said. “I’m sure there are answers to those, but we’re not going to be able to do that today. But I would like to have some answers to some additional questions. I’m going to defer to the will of the commission, but personally, I would like to defer this decision for 30 days and get some answers to some questions.”

Erdman asked Watkins to prepare responses to concerns raised by residents.

Central District Assistant District Engineer Randy Aulbur noted that in the early 2000s, regional partners approached MoDOT about widening the highway due to traffic and crashes.

The regional Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) in Rolla, consisting of elected officials, indicated this project was its second-highest priority.

Planning began in 2006, with public involvement opportunities to include public meetings. Two meetings were held in 2007, and in 2008, four locations emerged as alternatives.

An Environmental Impact Study (EIS) was conducted in 2009, and this project was added to MoDOT’s Tier II high-priority unfunded needs list in 2019.

In August 2022, a public comment period was opened for reevaluation, and a property-owner-requested meeting took place in October.

As funding became available in 2023, the project was moved to the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) for 2023-27.

A reevaluation of the EIS and preferred alternative was completed and approved by the Federal Highway Administration. “The purpose of that reevaluation was to assess if the original findings were still accurate,” said Aulbur.

A detailed look at residents’ concerns and proposed alternatives will be presented next week.