A full parking lot and an overflow crowd led to predictions that state highway officials were about to hear a multitude of complaints about their
plans for completion of the Southern Bypass around Russellville. Those attending the public information meeting on March 20 had filled all the seats
and were standing around the walls of the Russellville High School cafeteria.
After spokesman Joe Plunk of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet's District 3 office presented a brief overview of the project, however, no one
asked questions or voiced public objections to the planned completion of the final segment of the approximately 13.5-mile loop circling Russellville..
Afterwards several people talked among themselves and met with a number of highway department representatives as well as employees of the
project's design company, American Engineers of Glasgow. Those who had the answers seemed willing to talk as long as those with questions or comments
wanted answers and clarifications. Detailed maps and photographs of the affected area were on display.
The planned construction project will run 4.6 miles from the end of the latest addition on KY 100 (the Franklin Road) to the end of the original
northern bypass at its intersection with US 79 (the Clarksville Road).
While the northern bypass which was completed in the mid-1990s is four-lane all the way, the link between US 68-80 and KY 100 is a two-lane
stretch with no passing allowed. The new road will be constructed originally with only two lanes, although Plunk said plans are to purchase enough
right of way to permit widening the Southern Bypass to four-lane status when traffic flow (along with available funding) warrants it.
The Northern Bypass connects five major routes into and out of Russellville—the Bowling Green, Morgantown Lewisburg, Hopkinsville and Clarksville
Roads—while also intersecting with the Concord, Newtown and Highland Lick roads. In fact, there are two Lewisburg roads—the old 431 and the four-lane
Terry Wilcutt Highway, which leads to the county's largest industrial employer, Logan Aluminum. The Northern Bypass is almost eight miles long.
The Southern Bypass, including the existing Franklin Road connector, will be 5.6 miles long. It will cross another major entrance/exit to
Russellville, the Nashville Road, and will also intersect with KY 96, the Orndorff Mill Road.
“The new bypass will alleviate truck traffic on Ninth and Nashville streets, which has always caused problems,” Plunk said. “It should pull truck
traffic away from the city's center.”
In the days that followed the meeting, The LoJo asked several government, civic and business leaders to share their thoughts concerning the
proposed Southern Bypass.
Russellville mayor Mark Stratton said: “It will help lessen the truck traffic in downtown Russellville. This will help truck drivers travel around
Russellville without having to maneuver their tractor trailers around and through narrow streets downtown, not to mention the opportunity for
economical development in the Southern Bypass area. It is a project that the citizens of Russellville and Logan County have been discussing for years,
and now we are beginning to see the light at the end of this tunnel with the plans of the project presented to the public and this project placed on
State Transportation's Six-Year Road Plan.”
Some other city leaders agree.
“With the heavy traffic we have now through our city, the bypass would be a welcomed relief to our downtown area in getting the commercial
vehicles off our city streets. I hear lots of complaints about 18-wheelers in our city, and the completed bypass should help to alleviate most of this
problem for us,” said Councilwoman Sandra Kinser, who also heads one of the city's biggest downtown businesses, BB&T bank.
Councilman Jack Whipple, whose background is in industry, said, “I think it is needed to help truck traffic flow through Russellville. It should
help trucks coming from Nashville or Springfield that are going to Logan Aluminum, Bowling Green, Clarksville and Hopkinsville. They will not have to
go through Russellville, just like the large trucks coming from Franklin on 100 going to Logan Aluminum or Bowling Green can now take the eastern
bypass.”
Stratton said the council has had no discussion about annexing portions of the highway which are not currently in the city limits. The planned
route goes just south of The Greens subdivision near Russellville Country Club on the Nashville Road, just past the city limits..
As a result of getting truck and through traffic away from downtown, the existing route through Russellville should flow much better, cutting down
the time required to go from the east side of town to the Russellville High/Junior High School complex and beyond to Olmstead, Todd County and
Clarksville..
Olmstead Elementary School Principal Ben Kemplin lives on the east side of Russellville near Logan County High School and says he probably will
continue to drive the approximately three miles from his home via Ninth Street past the current end of the bypass, rather than taking the longer route
around the city on his way to school.
“I am sure there will be effects of all kinds that have not even been thought of. One I know of for sure is one of my teachers will be losing her
home due to the project,” Kemplin said. “Our school is like a family, so what affects one of us affects us all. I'm also sure it will open up lands to
development for homes and businesses, which could lead to a rise in our student population. And, of course, it will bring about changes in our bus
routes. I am hoping other than the loss of homes and the disruptions such as that; that overall it will be good for our county as a whole. I for one
will be glad to see it keep the large transfer trucks off of Ninth Street and out of the downtown area as well.”
Another county school administrator, Adairville Elementary School Assistant Principal Steve Stratton, observed, “As with any type of progress,
although some would argue this is not progress, there will be positives and negatives to the issue. For Adairville and South Logan there will be
opportunities for growth; improved transportation often leads to opportunities to attract new industries or retail business, which means increased
revenues for Adairville and South Logan to use to better the quality of life for its citizens.
“For Adairville School it could mean an increase in enrollment. More students mean more revenue, more jobs in education, more programs offered,
leading to better education for our students. We have a great school but we are limited in enrollment because we are on the Tennessee state line, which
limits our ability to draw students here. Growth in housing brought on by growth in jobs would mean more students coming to our area.”
Tom Harned, executive director of the Logan Economic Alliance for Development (LEAD), agrees that the Southern Bypass should provide more
opportunities for economic growth, just has been the case with the Northern Bypass.
“Russellville and Logan County are blessed with an excellent highway network. US 68, KY 80, US 79, US 431 and KY 100 all combine to move
employees and materials in and out of the county. The completion of the Southern Bypass will complete the loop around Russellville joining all these
roads in a time-saving and efficient system that will promote economic growth,” Harned noted.”The completion of the bypass is a long awaited milestone
in development of a comprehensive road system in Russellville and Logan County. It will enhance the economic development of the area for many years to
come.”
Plunk said purchase of right of ways, which includes 28 parcels, will begin in Fiscal Year 2013, which doesn't start until July 1, 2013. Utility
relocation is scheduled for Fiscal Year 2014, and construction funds should be available in the fiscal year which begins July 1, 2016.
Dr. Jim Luckett of Louisville, who attended a June 10, 2003 meeting on the project with his father, Dr. J.C. Luckett, was back this time with his
dad's widow, Donna Luckett of Russellville. He said the road will go through their land, which is located between the Franklin and Nashville roads. Bob
Kemp said the route travels through an extended area he owns along with his late brother Norwood's widow, Jean Kemp.
The aerial photographs of the route show that much of the land in question is undeveloped, but Plunk said officials have learned that some
development has occurred since those photographs were taken.
One part of the route which has been questioned is behind the RHS Complex on land which the school system owns. “I would personally like it if the
bypass did not take part of our property in the back of our campus. We have about 14 acres of good land that we plan to use in the future for
additional growth of our school district. It gives us potential building options that would be negated by taking the approximately five acres that
would be prime road frontage and access,” said City School Superintendent Leon Smith.
“I love the fact that Russellville is being progressive, and it will give better access to our property. Looking at the drawings, it appears that
it wouldn't take much to move the bypass more to the west and off the Russellville High School campus,” Smith continued. “I am fully supportive of the
need for the completion of the bypass but would like to see some adjustments for our future.
Smith later told The LoJo that the area in question could be a possible location for a new facility to replace the current Russellville
Area Technology Center, which is beginning to show its age.
“I completely agree with Mr. Smith. I was on the Transportation Committee when various plans were developed. His idea would seem cheaper and more
practical for future service to our students,” said Board Chair James Milam. “I did point out that the present plan would seem to call for a sound
barrier routinely constructed elsewhere. I'm expecting there'll be more forums.”
Chief District Engineer Greg Meredith responded to the school officials' concerns this way: “The Project Team discussed the different alignment
options at the beginning of the project near US 79. The current alignment would take the building on Parcel 1, while a modified alignment would avoid
the building and reduce right-of-way acquisition from the back property of the school.
“However, a modified alignment would impact more of the FEMA floodplain, cover a large sinkhole that intercepts runoff from a large water shed and
require a lengthy channel change to the Town Branch Tributary. Stream impact fees for regulated perennial streams are between $306 and $612 per linear
foot, depending on the quality of the stream as determined by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The anticipated channel change length would be
approximately 2000 feet. Due to these impacts, the Project Team decided to keep the alignment location as shown.”
Meredith continued, “Based upon this analysis, the additional stream impact fees that would be incurred to change the alignment away from school
property would be in the neighborhood of $300,000 and $600,000. We feel that this additional cost isn't justified and are moving forward with the most
easterly route.”
Stratton, the Adairville administrator, offered this observation: “Progress has a cost, South Logan is blessed with some of the best farm land in
the nation; it is hard to raise corn on blacktop. Farms that have been in families for many years may be split, disrupting the lives of those who
cherish those farms and their way of life that comes with farming. In the end the question should be is the cost of the project, several million
dollars I would guess, worth the disruptions and costs. Or does the growth that often comes with improved transportation out-weigh those costs?
“As my age increases I tend to think expensive road projects that take years to see the benefits of are not worth the disruptions in lives and the
costs in tax revenues. But when I think about my grandchildren who will be graduating high school and college in the coming years and the need for
growth in jobs and opportunities for our young people, I realize the importance of this project and the long term impact it will bring to South Logan
and Adairvillle. While I may grumble about my tax dollars being spent, we need the growth and opportunities that will come with this long awaited
project.”