JeffCo plans $36 million in road projects impacting Hoover
Jefferson County’s 2018 road project plan includes more than $36 million in road projects that impact Hoover, Commissioner Jimmie Stephens shared with the Hoover Area Chamber of Commerce on April 19.
That includes:
- Expanding Morgan Road from two lanes to five lanes from Interstate 459 to South Shades Crest Road. The county is scheduled to seek bids on that estimated $20 million project in December, and construction is expected to take 24 to 30 months, said Cal Markert, director of roads and transportation for the county.
- Patching, leveling and repaving Morgan Road from Interstate 459 to Alabama 150. That work should be done this summer, Markert said.
- Adding middle turn lanes on Patton Chapel Road between Crayrich Drive and Chapel Lane and replacing the bridge over Patton Creek. The county hopes to seek bids on that construction contract in October or November but is dealing with a lot of utility issues, Markert said. Construction should take 24 to 30 months, and the total project cost is estimated at $7.7 million, he said.
- Extending Galleria Boulevard on the south side of John Hawkins Parkway to Old Montgomery Highway. That project is estimated to cost $5.8 million, Markert said. The county is trying to acquire rights of way now and hopes to begin construction in fiscal 2019 or fiscal 2020, he said.
- Adding a second northbound lane on South Shades Crest Road from Willow Lakes to Alabama 150. The county hopes to start construction on that job in late 2019, Markert said.
- Repaving Cedar Crest Drive, Chestnut Ridge Circle, Old Rocky Ridge Lane and Shannon Road. That work should be done this summer, Markert said.
In the future, the county also plans to extend Lakeshore Drive from Alabama 150 to Morgan Road, though no timeline has been set for that project, Markert said. It is expected to cost $5 to $6 million, he said.
The future extension of Lakeshore Drive, while in Bessemer, should help a lot of Hoover residents who are tired of Dollar General trucks coming and going on the Hoover portion of Alabama 150, Stephens said. That extension is planned to connect with Morgan Road near the Milo’s Tea plant, he said.
Stephens said the road projects are just one example of a “new day” in Jefferson County government.
The money for road projects was made possible due to the restructuring of the county’s debt and reallocation of some of the sales tax money originally dedicated for education to other county functions, Stephens said.
The county now is able to spend $25 million a year on infrastructure such as road and building projects that had been delayed while the county went through financial troubles several years back, Stephens said. It also is able to invest $10 million a year in economic development to help bring more jobs to Jefferson County, he said.
Last year, companies announced plans to create nearly 2,500 jobs in Jefferson County, according to figures provided by Stephens. That’s in addition to more than 10,100 jobs announced in the previous six years, his data indicated.
The county also is redistributing $100 million to Jefferson County school systems, including $9.1 million given to Hoover City Schools in September and $1.7 million more to be given to Hoover schools next week, Stephens said. The county expects to give Hoover schools about $2.4 million a year for the next 25 years, he said.
“We are reinvesting in our future, just as the city of Hoover is,” Stephens said. “We’ve learned from the past. We want to make Jefferson County the best place to live and to raise your families with opportunities to work and play with an enhanced quality of life.”