Columbus officials have approved a new, conceptual alignment for a potential road that would serve as an alternative to State Road 11.
The Columbus City Council passed a resolution Tuesday updating the Thoroughfare Plan Map. The changes include a revision to the alignment of a potential new north-south road running from State Road 46 to County Road 450S, which city officials say could be a largely flood-free alternative to State Road 11.
City-County Planning Director Jeff Bergman said that the Thoroughfare Plan is an element of the city’s current Comprehensive Plan. It includes thoroughfare policies and a map applying those policies to the city. The map also provides classifications for street functions and suggests future projects.
The plan’s main purpose is to “anticipate future growth and development and then anticipate what transportation improvements are going to be needed to accommodate that,” Bergman said.
“Primarily, what you’re going to find in the thoroughfare plan are conceptual options for improving the street network,” he said. “It does, however, serve some fairly important practical purposes in that the thoroughfare plan is referred to by city zoning ordinance and by the subdivision control ordinance for certain regulations.”
The Thoroughfare Plan Map identifies a potential new north-south road between State Road 46 and 200S that would “run generally parallel with Jonesville Road/State Road 11.” It’s anticipated that the road would also reach down to County Road 450S.
This potential new road has been on the plan since 2010 and is also referred to in other planning documents, Bergman said. This includes the city’s flood risk management plan, as the potential road could be a largely flood-free replacement or alternative to State Road 11.
He added that it could also provide an opportunity for bike and pedestrian infrastructure that would be difficult to add to State Road 11.
Bergman said that while the road is not new to the plan, there has been a change in its proposed alignment.
Additional information has come from discussions with Columbus Regional Health about the Garden City farms property, with Columbus City Utilities about a possible new sewer corridor and the Indiana Department of Transportation about potential changes to State Road 11 and a possible replacement.
“The conclusion is that a slightly different alignment, with the street to the west of the Cross Creek neighborhood (along 200S) rather than the east, is more feasible,” he wrote in a memorandum to city council. The updated map will reflect this change.
The planning department contacted property owners regarding the State Road 46 to County Road 200S new road alignment, Bergman said.
Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. has shown its support for the proposed new alignment, as the school officials were concerned that the previously shown route would increase congestion and potentially create unsafe traffic conditions near Southside Elementary School.
While some property owners agreed that the currently displayed route to the east was likely not feasible, they also had concerns about the new alignment to the west, including the impact on backyards, storm water drainage issues and cut-through traffic. They also expressed a desire for separation and buffering between their homes and the road.
Two owners said they were willing to sell their property for the project, though they also expressed unease about how the potential project and its unknowns might affect their ability to sell property for uses such as development and could also impact the land’s value.
“I think there’s general agreement that those concerns are legitimate and certainly a part of the discussion, if and when that road project moves forward. What we don’t have is a mechanism at this point, with this very conceptual thoroughfare plan, to address those with any specificity,” Bergman said.
Residents Nathan and Sheri Hinckley reiterated some of the neighborhood’s concerns during the time for public comment. Nathan thanked city officials for constantly listening to their statements and expressed hope that the concerns will be considered if and when the project comes to fruition.
Bergman said the most of the concerns raised are topics that are typically discussed during a road design project and are therefore unlikely to be overlooked if the potential project moves forward.
Executive Director of Public Works and City Engineer Dave Hayward said that the steps involved in the project — including those for notifying residents in the relevant area — will depend on what type of funds are used.
“If we use all local funds … we could use local procedures and that could move much more quickly,” he said. “And at the other end of the scale, if INDOT does the right of way acquisition using federal money, there are a lot of rules and regulations that they would follow. And it can take much, much longer. And there’s a lot more cost in all of those steps along the way.”
INDOT has indicated that they are studying the State Road 11 corridor due to its flooding closures and have shared potential alignment concepts that are consistent with the city’s thoroughfare plan, Bergman said.
At present, they seem to be in “early examinations” of the same route as an alternative to State Road 11, he said, and there isn’t funding behind the effort at present, other than the study.
However, he added, “INDOT’s participation down the road would certainly help fund what would be a really significant road project that would certainly be a very large undertaking for the city.”
He did note that one reality of such a potential partnership would be that the state’s vision for the road could differ from the city’s.
Bergman said that they’ve had good interactions with INDOT so far and expect more conversations in the future.
