Remember the roundabout planned for the intersection of Old Hartford Road and Fairview Drive/Foors Lane at the east corner of Hillcrest Golf Course? It’s going to be at least mid-2025 before that project breaks ground.
All four cross streets of the intersection are only two lanes (with no dedicated turn lane from any side) and there are no left-turn lights.
The plans for a roundabout started with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet back in 2015 to help ease traffic at the intersection. In January 2023, KYTC District 2 spokesperson Kiersten Jaggers said engineers decided to go with a roundabout because they felt like it was safer for pedestrians as well as vehicles.
The planning stages have continued to move along since then — with one of the most recent steps being the City of Owensboro selling a small portion of land to the state — but the project can’t move forward until funds are made available.
Tom Lovett, Director of the Owensboro-Daviess County Metropolitan Planning Organization, said that KYTC released its proposed highway plan on January 17. He said the plan covers the next 6 years of road projects and is updated every 2 years as part of the new state budget.
“The Fairview Drive intersection is listed in the new plan. The legislature is proposing $2.24 million in 2025 for construction,” Lovett said.
Larry Krueger, KYTC’s District 2 Transportation Engineering Branch Manager for Project Development, said they don’t know yet if any of those funds will be allocated to the project. He said if they do get the money, the project is still more than a year out from breaking ground.
“District 2 won’t know for sure if and when construction funds will be available until the Enacted Six-Year Highway Plan is approved in April. If construction funds are made available within the first 2 years (biennium) of the Enacted Six-Year Plan, District 2 anticipates advertising the project for construction in the spring of 2025,” Krueger said.
He said groundbreaking would occur a couple of months after a contractor is awarded the project, and the roundabout should be completed in less than a year after the start of construction.
Krueger noted that KYTC is currently acquiring property for the project, saying “approximately half of the parcels affected have been made offers.” He added that utility coordination is ongoing but “many agreements and plans are complete.” For example, he said, Atmos Energy has already completed its utility relocation.
Regarding traffic disruption, Krueger said there would only be temporary closures.
“Traffic will be maintained through the intersection during construction,” he said. “However, the northern portions of Foors Lane and Stone Creek Park Road will be closed temporarily during the early phases of construction.”
Last week, the City of Owensboro approved selling .764 acres of land to the Commonwealth of Kentucky for $67,8000. The land is located at the easternmost point of the Hillcrest property.
During a City Commission meeting, Assistant City Manager Leland Hancock said, “While a row of the existing Hillcrest parking lot will be taken out by the project, the state is including the construction and replacement of this parking in the scope of the work at no cost to the City.”
Leland said the city’s parks and engineering staff have reviewed the plans and are “confident the project will have no impact on the golf course.”
Parks and Recreation Director Amanda Rogers echoed those thoughts.
“We’ve seen the blueprints and the designs,” she said. “We’ve worked really hard with (the state) to make sure that it minimizes disruption to the course. … Outside of some of that disruption over the course of the project that may interfere with one lane of parking or another, we’re really not going to see any interference with play at the course.”
