Citizens Voice Concerns at MLK Street Project Public Forum

Yesterday evening, a meeting was held for the Transportation Enhancement Project of Martin Luther King Drive. One of the City of San Angelo’s Engineering Service members, Lance Overstreet, is going to be overseeing the project and led the meeting.

The meeting was meant to be a discussion between city officials and the people who reside on MLK.

Information on the Project

To begin, Overstreet provided information on what the project will entail. He said the city will be adding sidewalks and bike lanes to the street. The city also wants to improve infrastructure rehabilitation, including water lines, waste water lines, roads, curbs and gutters.

“This project is going to be done with a federally funded grant,” said Overstreet. “This project is meant to improve pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure for the city.”

The road will be reconstructed from the loop down MLK and down to 29^th Street, and sidewalks will be added along the street as well. This will be done sections at a time.

There will be partial lane closures at times, and the scheduling for the construction is still being negotiated. Lane closures will be relayed from the city to the people who live on the street if it directly affects them.

As of now, depending on the contractor’s schedule, construction will begin in October, and it will be a 20- to 22-month process.

“As far as infrastructure goes, once this is done, it will be a brand new street,” said Overstreet. “It will be a positive impact on the families and businesses on the street.”

Impacting Businesses and Homes

The goal of the plan is to do the renovations without causing a negative impact on the businesses and homes in the area. If they can foresee a problem with the businesses or homeowners, city officials want to work around the issues and needs of the citizens.

Pam Bladine, an owner of a business on MLK, said, “The city owns that land and they will do with it what they will; but, what is frustrating, is that this seems to all be happening and we didn’t get a say on any part of the reconstruction.”

Bladine and other business owners were there voicing their concerns about the project because they think the renovations of the road and installation of a sidewalk will take away parking from their businesses.

Overstreet said, “If there are specific concerns of a particular part of MLK, I would be happy to listen and see how you and your business can be accommodated.”

The City Manager, Daniel Valenzuela, was at the meeting and told some business owners he would come and see problems that they feel will negatively affect their businesses, if the project is followed through.

Other issues were discussed as well by concerned citizens. They questioned awnings over bus stops, and where the large machinery will be kept during the construction.

The goal of the forum overall was for the city to hear the issues from the people, and they have hopes of having another before they break ground.

If the project plans affect citizens and they have questions, Lance Overstreet can be contacted through email at [email protected].