By Joe Reavis
Staff Writer
Accessibility to neighborhoods, safety, proximity to homes, noise and a traffic bottleneck were concerns given by Wylie area residents last week at a Texas Department of Public Transportation public hearing on a project to widen FM 2514/Parker Road.
The public hearing was conducted Thursday, Jan. 11, at McMillan Junior High School.
The project will widen Parker Road to four lanes, ultimately six lanes, over a 3.343-mile stretch from Lavon Parkway to Brown Street. TxDOT anticipates starting construction in 2021 and estimates the cost at $56.7 million.
An open house was held prior to the public hearing for concerned citizens to view maps of the project and ask questions of TxDOT representatives in attendance. The highway department registered 152 persons in attendance, of which 45 signed up to comment for the hearing record.
TxDOT engineer Ceason Clemens opened the hearing with a welcome and introductions, Aaron Tainter of Bridgefarmer and Associates presented a project design overview and Ashley McLain outlined environmental studies and impacts.
Tainter reported that right-of-way for the road will vary from 72 feet at its southern end at Brown Street to 230 feet. Along most of the length, traffic will be divided by a center median that will be eliminated as it narrows from the railroad crossing in Wylie to Brown.
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