Survey Says: Residents want road widenings

Photos courtesy Google Maps

City staff recommends widening Galloway Street between Luster and Lone Pine avenues.

Springfield Public Works leaders yesterday presented the findings of a resident survey on the most wanted projects to be funded by the city’s quarter-cent capital improvements sales tax.

The results from over 1,500 respondents were presented during a City Council workshop, according to a news release. Ahead of a planned April 2019 vote to renew the tax, city officials in August issued the survey containing more than 20 infrastructure projects that could be funded if voters renew the levy.

Below are the top eight most popular projects identified by survey respondents:

1. Widening Campbell Avenue between Republic Road and Westview Street.

2. Widening Galloway Street between Luster and Lone Pine avenues.

3. Widening Kansas Avenue between Republic Road and Walnut Lawn Street.

4. Reconstructing Division Street between National and Glenstone avenues.

5. Improving the intersection at Battlefield Road and Lone Pine Avenue.

6. Improving the intersection at National Avenue and Sunset Street.

7. Widening Fremont Avenue between Erie and Independence streets.

8. Widening National Avenue between Walnut Lawn and Montclair streets.

Council reviewed a list that factored the survey results, as well as the assessed need by city departments and partner agencies, the ability to make the improvements in a set time, and the dispersing of projects equally by geographic region, according to the release.

On that separate list, the highest-rated project was the Galloway Street widening proposal. The Campbell Avenue widening proposal ranked second.

At the meeting yesterday, council also reviewed the possibility of expanding the length of the quarter-cent sales tax before it needs to be renewed by voters. The sales tax is up for vote every three years, according to SpringfieldMo.gov. City spokeswoman Cora Scott said officials are discussing the possibility of expanding the length of the tax for the April 2019 ballot.

“When you have a longer window of planning, it does create additional efficiencies,” Public Works Director Dan Smith said in the release, noting it “could expedite project timelines.”