I AM Buddy, The BUDDHA From Mississippi ™: Pond Mill Bridge Resetting - Update McCracken Road At 3rd St. Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Pond Mill Bridge Resetting - Update McCracken Road At 3rd St. Tuesday, June 20, 2023
Video shows work at The Pond Mill Bridge Being Resetting Over The Finley River In Ozark Missouri. Tuesday, June 20, 2023 - What I Saw On My Bicycle Ride Today
Hartman & Company, Inc. is the prime contractor. There Link Below
https://www.facebook.com/hartmanandcompanyinc/

McCracken Road Project 2022-2023 SEE Link For More Info.
https://ozarkmissouri.com/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=338

As a citizen who drives every day in Ozark you certainly recognize our volume of traffic is becoming more not less. The City of Ozark continues to be a highly desirable market for developers, both residential and commercial, because of the many wonderful attributes our community has to offer. As new growth occurs the impact that growth has on our infrastructure system, specifically transportation, creates significant demands for increased capacity. As a river community, bridges are a critical component to the transportation system as well as managing the flood waters that can cause road closures, increase safety risks, and cause property damage.

Knowing growth and economic development is intricately tied to transportation improvements, in 2019 Governor Mike Parsons created the Governor’s Transportation Cost Share Program, specifically focused on funding local transportation improvements that would advance economic development projects in Missouri while also improving capacity and safety.

The City of Ozark, in partnership with Christian County, Ozark Special Road District, and the Finley Farms Transportation Development District, submitted an application to receive some of these funds for a project in Ozark. We were fortunately successful in our application and in the summer of 2020 received a Governor’s Cost Share Grant with a project scope that included:

1. The reconstruction and rehabilitation of the 95-year old Mill Pond Bridge;

2. The reconstruction of the intersection of North 3rd Street and McCracken Road;

3. The rising of the roadway elevation to provide new storm water boxes that will decrease the negative impact of frequent flooding events;

4. Improve safety with the addition of new intersection approaches, striped turn lanes, directional islands, and improved signage.

This project was originally scheduled for late summer 2020, however, due to the COVID pandemic causing supply and labor shortages, increased costs, and funding delays an extension request was necessary and a new “Phased” timeline was developed as outlined below:

Crews will begin construction on the improvements to the 3rd and McCracken intersection and the Rehabilitation of the McCracken Road Bridge on December 5, 2022. Work will include the reconstruction of the 3rd and McCracken intersection to allow a thru north-south traffic movement. Improvements will also include the addition of multi-use pedestrian tunnels below McCracken Road and 3rd Street. The pedestrian tunnels will serve new trails connecting the Finley River Park, the Ozark Mill site, and the future Garrison Branch trail extension. Lastly the improvements will include the rehabilitation of the existing McCracken Road Bridge over the Finley River. The improvements are anticipated to occur in five (5) phases