| The $80 Million Dollar Road
WVCO Board members recently contacted Yavapai County to get the latest cost estimates for Williamson Valley road construction and to review the current state of the County plans for the road. Plans for the South project, Iron Springs to Pioneer Parkway are 100% complete, and right-of-way acquisition in the County portion of this project is underway. The cost estimate for Prescott City portion of this project, Iron Springs to Shadow Ranch Road, is $9,431,420 for construction only, and $8,719,880 for the County portion. The County would not provide right-of-way cost estimates, but these could easily be an additional $1-2 million for a total cost of approximately $20 million
For the North Project, Pioneer Parkway to Outer Loop Road, combined construction and right-of-way acquisition costs are estimated at $41,053,384. Thus the total current cost estimate for the WV road project is over $60 million. Project personnel acknowledge the actual cost would be higher, and even Supervisor Springer talks about an $80 million dollar project.
To put $80 million in perspective, that is about $400 for every man, woman and child in Yavapai County. It is one-third of the total County budget. Why does the County want to spend this amount on an expressway that is not needed, at a time when revenues are falling, and the Supervisors have just incurred $50 million in indebtedness for other capital projects?
So what would we get for that money? In the South Project the design calls for incorporating massive retaining walls on the west side of the road along the hillside south of Sylvan Drive. One wall is almost 35' high in places and runs more than 1300 feet in length. At one point, the wall would be almost three times as tall as the one by Watters on Iron Springs(see cross-section diagram).
South Project Retaining Wall Cross-section
While the plans available for the North project are only at the 30% design stage and may change, there are many troubling elements. In this Project, the major issue is the median. In the current design, there will be about a dozen intersections where one can turn left across four lanes (or three and a median). There are several other roads where only right turns are allowed and 48 driveways with right turn only access directly onto Williamson Valley Road. Such a design poses many safety issues and is a decided inconvenience at best. Envision emergency vehicles, stationed at the fire station on Outer Loop road having to bypass your home before making a U-turn and returning--a possible life or death detour where minutes count.
Most of the North section will be a divided highway. The first approximately 3.3 miles north from Pioneer Parkway will have a raised, 16 foot wide median. The next approximately 2 miles will have a 30 foot wide depressed median. Only the last segment from American Ranch to Outer Loop will have a continuous paved center lane.
As for the horseback riders, there will be an underpass to cross to the Forest Service’s Granite Mountain trailhead. Access by road to the trailhead will only be available from the North. Riders from Granite Mountain stables will have to ride about a mile alongside this freeway to reach the underpass at the trailhead. There is one other underpass proposed at Blackjack. It would allow eastside American Ranch owners access to their equestrian facilities on the westside. Why here and not at the stable? Do the American Ranch residents have more pull than the small business owner at the stable?
The County conducted a walk through of the North Project with participants from County staff and others, such as APS, and other utilities. A County staff member outlined in red, on the map of the intersection at the riding stable, a horse under crossing. He obviously understood the need if the stable would be able to remain in business. Riders at the stable pay for their rides by the hour. To ride to the trailhead and back would take at least an hour. Not a pleasant ride for the money. Horses do not like dark scary places like tunnels, but crossing an expressway is fraught with risks for horses and riders. When we asked the Public Works official if an under crossing would be provided at the stable, the response was no they will have to ride to the trailhead crossing, but “They will be riding won’t they?” (See diagram below).
WV Road Plan View at Granite Mtn. Stables
Folks, the County has totally disregarded the citizens of Williamson Valley with this expressway to nowhere.
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......and other news about WV Road
WV Road Traffic Counts
Traffic counts obtained by Yavapai County for Williamson Valley Road were presented at the WVCO meeting on May 22nd, 2008. Click here to see these counts. The counts do not justify the County's contention that traffic volumes exceed 10,000 cars a day justify road widening. Note that traffic volumes have decreased in recent years, no doubt due to reduced construction traffic. This data is particularly sensitive to construction traffic because it is not corrected for multiple axle vehicles or vehicles with trailers.
County Begins Easement Acquisition
WVCO has learned that some residents adjacent to Williamson Valley Road in the south segment between Iron Springs and Pioneer Parkway have received offers from Yavapai County to buy easements for the road widening project. If you have received such an offer we would like to hear from you. Please send us information about your offer by e-mail at contact@wvcpinc.org .
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