Jackson road proposal could draw crowd

JACKSON, Mo. -- An item not on the agenda could draw the most people to tonight's meeting of the Jackson Board of Aldermen.

People who oppose a preliminary city proposal to extend West Lane through to Route D, which would increase the amount of traffic that runs by some city schools, are planning to attend the meeting to demonstrate their concern.

Ray Moore, who lives on West Lane, is trying to get the Jackson School District and parent-teacher organizations interested in the issue. Those who oppose extending West Lane have gathered 78 signatures on a petition. Most who signed live in the vicinity of the schools, Moore said.

"I have grandchildren going to school down there," he said.

West Lane now stops about one-fourth mile short of Route D, also known as Independence Street. If extended, it would increase traffic past Orchard and West Lane elementary schools and past the city's middle school and junior high school, Moore points out.

In a letter to the Southeast Missourian, he called the plan "absurd" and called on community members to show their opposition.

Mayor Paul Sander has called the concerns premature because the proposal has not yet been funded and may not be funded.

Any move to extend West Lane must await completion of a traffic study the city plans to commission soon. The study could take up to a year to finish.

Moore also has concerns about the impact of traffic on the West Lane subdivision itself. "I didn't move down here in a new subdivision to be on a commercial street," he said.

In an item that is on tonight's agenda, the board will conduct a public hearing on a proposal to annex 19.1 acres of property owned by the Southeast Missouri Medical Center Inc.