Beggs Man Frustrated With ODOT For Highway Proposals That Would Take Over His Property

A Beggs man is frustrated with two Oklahoma Department of Transportation proposals to improve Highway 75-A that would run through his property.

ODOT says it’s trying to fix a sharp curve under the railroad north of town, but he says there are other ways to get rid of the problem without tearing down properties.

A RESIDENT’S FRUSTRATION

Willy Smith, who goes by Willy D, says he’s spent years building his property, the Big D Ranch, and found out about the ODOT proposals from his neighbor. He wishes ODOT would work with neighbors before making a decision. Smith’s property has an indoor arena, tractors, several horses, chickens, and ducks, and a remodeled house.

“It’s not going to be easy to move these things around,” said Smith. “If they said hey, you got to move, it’s not as easy as transferring your lease on an apartment. I’m going to have to gather up my whole family like the old Oregon Trail and pack up and head somewhere else.”

Smith’s property is just southwest of the curve ODOT says it’s trying to improve because of safety and drainage issues. His property would be affected in two of the three proposals.

“I would love if ODOT would communicate with us as homeowners and say, ‘Hey, if we were going to go with Plan A, this is what you would be looking at with your land value or your house values,'" said Smith. “So then we’re not going to be left just wondering what’s going to happen. That’s what we’re filled with, is questions, questions, questions, until they make a decision.”

Smith hopes ODOT will look at other solutions, like clearing out drains and trimming trees.

“I don’t own up until my fence line,” said Smith. “ODOT can come through and trim all of those trees and really improve the visibility for the community in the meantime. If we really want to make this safer, let’s start taking actions today to make that happen, instead of waiting five years to do a full construction project.”

He says he’s worried about how all of this will affect his property value and doesn’t want to start from scratch somewhere else.

“I have a saying, don’t let the people who owe you money determine how much they owe you, and that’s what situation we’re in today,” said Smith. “ODOT is trying to tell me how much my land is worth.”

ODOT HIGHWAY 75-A PROJECT DESCRIPTION

ODOT says it plans to make improvements to US-75A starting at the SH-16 intersection and going north approximately 1.5 miles. They say the roadway has a sharp curve and a deficient railroad underpass with drainage issues.

ODOT says in 2022, the traffic volume in this area was 2,100 vehicles per day, and that is projected to increase to 2,500 vehicles per day by 2052. They said the purpose of this project is to improve safety by correcting a roadway with a sharp curve and narrow railroad underpass.

ODOT PROPOSALS

ODOT has suggested three different proposals to improve US-75A.

Option 1:

US-75 would cross over the BNSF railroad with a new bridge south of the existing underpass. The sharp highway curve would be eliminated, and US-75A would be shifted slightly to the northwest and would cross over the railroad near 13th Street and then tie back into the existing highway alignment.

Option 2:

US-75A would cross over the BNSF railroad with a new bridge north of the existing underpass. The sharp highway curve would be eliminated, and US-75A would be partially realigned to the northwest. The bridge would cross over the railroad north of 15th Street, curve around the west side of the railroad, and then tie back into the existing highway alignment.

Option 3:

A new highway alignment to the east would be created that would eliminate the BNSF railroad crossing. US-75A would curve around the east side of town, and a new US-75A/SH-16 intersection would be created approximately 0.6 miles to the east of the current location.

WHAT THE ROAD WOULD LOOK LIKE

According to ODOT whichever option chosen would be constructed with two 12-foot-wide driving lines and 8-foot-wide shoulders with curb-and-gutter sections in town. They said the acquisition of a new right-of-way will be required.

US-75A will remain open with access to businesses and residences being maintained throughout the project duration.

DIAGRAM OF PROPOSED ROUTES

STATEMENT FROM ODOT REGARDING PROJECT

“Public input is an important aspect of the design process. No final decision has been made regarding the proposed alignment of US-75A in Beggs. We appreciate all of the residents who have commented, whether it was at the in-person meeting in December or those who have viewed the information online. Once the comment period closes, we will review all comments received and work with the City of Beggs to determine which proposed alignment to move forward with.”

HOW TO SUBMIT PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE HIGHWAY 75-A PROJECT

 ODOT says people interested in submitting public comment can do so with this form here:

The email to send comments to is environment@odot.org. All comments need to be received by the end of business on January 6th.

MORE INFORMATION ON THE PROJECT

For more information on the project visit 20241219