IN THE COUNTY LEGISLATURE OF JACKSON COUNTY, MISSOURI
Title
A RESOLUTION supporting a new U.S. 169 “Buck” O’Neil Bridge over the Missouri River.
Intro
RESOLUTION NO. 19495, May 22, 2017
INTRODUCED BY Scott Burnett, County Legislator
Body
WHEREAS, the U.S. 169 “Buck” O’Neil Bridge, linking downtown Kansas City in Jackson County to Clay County, was constructed in the mid-1950’s; and,
WHEREAS, the bridge’s existing capacity and alignment no longer meet the long-term needs of the region; and,
WHEREAS, in 2016, the Kansas City region, through the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC), the City of Kansas City, Missouri, and the Missouri Department of Transportation entered into a partnership to create a long-term plan for the Buck O’Neil Bridge and surrounding urban highways; and,
WHEREAS, at the Missouri Department of Transportation’s recommendation, a Federal Highway Administration Planning and Environmental Linkages (PEL) process was funded using $3 million in regional Surface Transportation Program funds and a local match from the City of Kansas City, which has appropriated nearly $1 million toward this effort; and,
WHEREAS, the PEL process, managed through MARC, is well underway, and is expected to conclude in 2018; and,
WHEREAS, this study has already been the subject of public meetings and it is expected that one of the results of the study will be a comprehensive, long-term look at how a U.S. 169 river crossing can best serve the region for the next 75 years; and,
WHEREAS, the bridge’s age and condition make any major maintenance both costly and unsustainable; and,
WHEREAS, the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission has released a draft Statewide Transportation Improvement Program which has proposed approximately $49 million in state fiscal year 2019 to perform a 35-year rehabilitation of the bridge; and,
WHEREAS, the proposed rehabilitation will require an estimated two-year closure of the bridge; and,
WHEREAS, a sustained closure of this bridge would have irreversible and devastating life-safety and economic impacts to the Kansas City region, including the 24-hour, seven-day per week operations of the Charles Wheeler Downtown Airport, the life-saving services of the Children’s Mercy Hospital Life Flight, which completed 1,140 flight operations at the Downtown Airport in 2016, and the life-saving services of the Midwest Transplant Network, which completed 709 flight operations at Downtown Airport in 2016; and,
WHEREAS, a rehabilitation of the existing bridge would not reduce the existing traffic bottlenecks, allow for future population growth, improve non-motorized travel across the river, nor improve access to the Wheeler Downtown Airport, its operations, or its tenants; and,
WHEREAS, a rehabilitation would not improve the operational or safety aspects of the highway corridor; and,
WHEREAS, a rehabilitation will not provide a sustainable operational solution, resulting in future rehabilitation that will be similarly costly and disruptive; and,
WHEREAS, the proposed 35-year rehabilitation will negate any long-term plans being developed through the PEL process; and,
WHEREAS, a new U.S. 169 Missouri River Bridge could be built to current standards using construction methods that would not require any substantial maintenance until 2070; now therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the County Legislature of Jackson County, Missouri, that the Legislature hereby expresses its support the funding of a new U.S. 169 Buck O’Neil Bridge; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislature hereby requests that the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission commit to a long-term solution regarding the U.S. 169 Missouri River crossing by amending its draft Statewide Transportation Improvement Program to reduce the planned 35-year rehabilitation plan for the U.S. 169 Buck O’Neil Bridge to a five-year rehabilitation plan, with the funding necessary to perform such rehabilitation with minimal disruptions; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Legislature hereby requests that the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission include the funding necessary to begin the planning, design and regulatory review of a new U.S. 169 Buck O’Neil Bridge; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the Legislature that this Resolution be immediately transmitted to the Governor of the State of Missouri, the Cass, Clay, Jackson, Platte, and Ray County delegations to the Missouri General Assembly, and the Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission.
Enacted and Approved
Effective Date: This Resolution shall be effective immediately upon its passage by a majority of the Legislature.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
______________________________ ________________________________
Chief Deputy County Counselor County Counselor
Certificate of Passage
I hereby certify that the attached resolution, Resolution No. 19495 of May 22, 2017, was duly passed on May 22, 2017 by the Jackson County Legislature. The votes thereon were as follows:
Yeas _________9__________ Nays _________0__________
Abstaining ______0_________ Absent ________0__________
______________________ _____________________________
Date Mary Jo Spino, Clerk of Legislature