East Street sidewalk plans go out for bid

Enhancing East Street by widening it, adding curb and gutter and eventually replacing the stoplight at Daugherty Street with a roundabout – will start with a sidewalk.

City Administrator Carl Francis announced at the City Council meeting Monday that specifications for the sidewalk project have been sent out for bid.

It is engineered with the future widening project in mind.

The Missouri Department of Transportation will pay 80% of the cost as part of its Transportation Alternatives Program.

Cost estimates are $409,699 for construction, $80,298 for engineering and $62,400 for inspection. Of the $552,397 estimate total, MoDOT would pay $414,298, and the city would pay $135,099.

Webb City has previously used TAP funding to build sidewalks on Madison Street north of MacArthur Drive, North Main Street and Colonial Drive.

Plans for the East Street sidewalk call for it to go north from the roundabout at MacArthur Drive to the north side of Daugherty Street, where it will join an existing sidewalk.

Traffic consultants are helping the city prepare an application for a State of Missouri Traffic Improvement Grant to help pay for the East Street widening and roundabout.

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Francis also reported that the public works department has located and fixed a large leak. It was in a 6-inch water line near Stadium Drive and Madison Street.

Francis urges residents to call City Hall if they suspect a leak in the water system.

Mayor Lynn Ragsdale attended the meeting by FaceTime, with City Clerk Kim DeMoss’ phone pointed at Mayor Pro Tem Jerry Fisher as he conducted the meeting. Ragsdale was on a mission trip in the Philippines.

There were only two items on the agenda to be acted on.

Police Chief Don Melton was authorized to apply for a grant from the Division of Highway Safety for DWI saturation patrols (Wolfpacks), hazardous moving violation enforcement and enforcement equipment. He noted that the department has participated in the program for 19 years and received a total of $646,987.

The police department was allowed to accept $29,429 from the Jasper County Law Enforcement Sales Tax Grant Board. Melton said his application was for equipment to outfit the department’s three new SUVs, which are to be delivered soon.

Fisher gloated to Ragsdale with a half-laugh that he had finished the meeting in “record time.”