Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Concerns raised over new U.S. 95 project

Comments

To comment on the project, the public can e-mail comments to: info@ dot.state.nv.us or write a letter. Letters may be mailed to Daryl N. James,P.E., Chief Environmental Services Division , Nevada Department of Transportation , 1263 S. Stewart St., Carson City, NV 89712.

All comments are due by 5 p.m. on Oct. 10.

The prospect of widening U.S. 95 in northwest Las Vegas prompted a handful of curious residents to voice concerns Wednesday to Nevada Department of Transportation officials about noise, dust and congestion.

State transportation officials said they need to know the public's concerns about the environmental impact of expanding the freeway for seven miles, between Craig Road and Kyle Canyon Road.

There was no draft design available at the hearing in the Mountain View Neighborhood Service Center on North Durango Road. The cost of the project was not provided because NDOT will not know how extensive the work will be until an environmental assessment is completed in April. Public hearings will be conducted after that, probably in June, officials said.

Chad Anson, a consultant to the state, said that if the project is approved, construction could begin on the first phase by October 2005. The project could take two years or longer to complete, he said.

It could feature an interchange at U.S. 95 and Ann Road that would rival the interchange at Interstate 15 and U.S. 95, known as the Spaghetti Bowl.

There are also proposals for a dedicated bus lane and at least one park-and-ride lot.

The broader freeway would handle traffic in the area through 2030, officials said.

Area resident Patrick Treichel said he's worried about the additional noise that will come with the additional traffic. About 10 homes near the Craig Road entrance were built before the freeway was constructed, Treichel said.

"We're right on the entrance ramp," Treichel said, urging state officials to install noise barriers.

Bill Burchinal and his wife, Debbie, have similar problems with a house that backs up to the freeway.

He noted that "it's still up in the air on how they're going to do it and the extent."

The Burchinals have lived in the area for four years, and Bill Burchinal said he takes U.S. 95 to his job in downtown Las Vegas.

For Sharon Gordon, a veterinarian with an office abutting the U.S. 95 off-ramp at Ann Road, the concerns were losing property as well as noise and dust.

"Obviously, you're doing it for our benefit," Gordon said. "The road is going to need to be widened."

But the veterinarian said she did not want high noise walls, because pet owners would be unable to find her office.

During earlier construction in the area "the noise was so bad my staff complained of headaches," she said.

Another entity interested in the project's timetable is the Bureau of Land Management.

Jacqueline Gratton of the BLM's Division of Lands said the federal agency would track the project carefully. The BLM is auctioning federal parcels in the area to developers.

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