State pursuing Ronan highway expansion

RONAN – After more than a decade of discussion, the Montana Department of Transportation is moving forward with a proposed highway expansion north of Ronan.

On Dec. 6, department officials announced that they plan to begin the right-of-way acquisition process for land boarding a 4.1-mile stretch of highway between Round Butte and Baptiste Roads early next year.

The news came at a public meeting in the Ronan Community Center, where local residents expressed long-running concerns over highway access, traffic speed and other factors related to the change.

The project, referred to as Ronan North, will expand the highway from two lanes to four, with a center section for left turns. Plans also call for the installation of a traffic signal at the intersection of Old Highway 93 and Third Avenue, as well as the closure of an access point at Spring Creek Road due to safety concerns. A bike and pedestrian path will also parallel the highway, connecting to the existing trail running through Polson and Pablo.

This limited-access model drew concern from local residents at the meeting however.

“How are people going to get into that dealership?” Ronan Mayor Kim Aipperspach said, referring to Pierce Ronan Dodge near the intersection of Highway 93 and Third Avenue.

Maureen Walsh, a right-of-way supervisor for the MDT’s Missoula District, said that the project simplifies but does not eliminate highway access. She said having multiple entrances and exits for one location creates confusing and dangerous situations.

“We’re focused on safety,” she said.

Walsh said the expansion requires the acquisition of roughly 14 acres of land on 16 separates parcels adjacent to the highway. Properties range from commercial to agricultural use, however there are no residences standing in the way.

She said right-of-way acquisition processes typically take between four and five months, adding that she does not expect significant push back from land owners.

The expansion project is one of the final pieces of the larger Mission Valley corridor reconstruction initially launched in the late 1990’s.

“This area was set aside because of its sensitivity,” Wash said.

Such sentiment was on full display at the Dec. 6 meeting. While the Ronan North project was the topic at hand, those in attendance still raised the issue of a more controversial expansion to the south.

That project, called Ronan Urban, involves splitting the highway into separate north and southbound lanes that wrap around the downtown area. Progress remains in limbo, however, due to complexities involving residential neighborhoods and businesses.

“It would essentially turn a dead-end street into a major corridor,” Walsh said.

Although the projects were originally conceived in response to public concern, one member of the audience asked the looming question: why can’t the road just stay the way it is?

“If there’s strong enough opposition from the community, the state can’t force it to go through,” answered Kathy Harris, a project manager with KLJ, the engineering contracted to construct the expansion. “In the end, you’ll be the ones who will be driving it everyday.”

Harris went on to acknowledge that although the Ronan North project is less controversial, such undertakings inevitable draw scrutiny.

“It takes right-of-way,” she said. “So it does affect people.”