Notice to Media

Public Hearings Scheduled to Discuss Proposed Great River Bridge

LITTLE ROCK (9-8) – The Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD), the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) will host open forum public hearings from 4 to 7 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 27, at the Dumas Community Center, 18 Belmont St. in Dumas, Ark., and on Tuesday, Sept. 28 at the Cleveland/Bolivar County Chamber of Commerce, 600 Third St., in Cleveland, Miss.

The hearings will allow interested persons, agencies and organizations the opportunity to express their views regarding the proposed location of a new bridge across the Mississippi River between Desha County, Ark. and Bolivar County, Miss. The new bridge is proposed to be a multi-modal facility, potentially housing both rail and highway facilities. Route alternative lengths vary from approximately 25 to 32 miles.

The proposed project is the result of years of study conducted to determine the best way to provide better connections between Desha and Bolivar counties. In 1996, public hearings were held to discuss four alternatives, all of which included a new river crossing in the vicinity of Big Island. Information about those alternatives is contained in a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS).

As a result of comments received from resource agencies about the DEIS, a fifth alternative was studied. Named the "Southern Alternative," the fifth option provides a river crossing near Arkansas City. Information about the Southern Alternative, as well as general information about the four previous alternatives, is contained in a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS).

Although no final decision will be made until after the public hearings, the Southern Alternative has been recommended as the preferred alternative. It would provide a new river crossing approximately two miles north of Arkansas City, immediately downstream of Cypress Bend and Catfish Point. The project would connect U.S. 65 on the north side of McGehee, Ark., to Route 1 a short distance north of Benoit, Miss., which is approximately 13 miles south of Rosedale.

Both the DEIS and the SDEIS are available for public inspection and copying at the following locations: U.S. Department of Transportation, 666 North Street, Suite 105, Jackson, Miss.; Arkansas Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD), District Two Headquarters, 4900 Highway 65 South, Pine Bluff, Ark.; AHTD, 10324 Interstate 30, Little Rock, Ark.; AHTD, Highway 425 North, Monticello, Ark.; AHTD, Highway 65, McGehee, Ark.; Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT), Office of Highways, Environmental Division, 401 North West Street, Room 3015, Jackson, Miss.; MDOT, Office of Highways Project Office, 3797 Old Highway 61 South, Leland, Miss.; MDOT, Office of Highways District Office, 150 Highway 51 North, Batesville, Miss.; MDOT, Office of Highways District Office, 1240 Highway 49 West, Yazoo City, Miss.; Dumas Chamber of Commerce, 165 Main Street, Dumas, Ark.; McGehee Chamber of Commerce, 901 Holly Street, McGehee, Ark.; Desha County Library, 211 North 4th Street, McGehee, Ark.; Dumas Public Library, 120 East Choctaw Street, Dumas, Ark.; Bolivar County Library, 104 South Leflore, Cleveland, Miss; Southeast Arkansas Regional Libraries, Monticello Branch, Dermott (Evans) Branch, Lake Village (Gatewood) Branch, Dumas Branch, Watson Branch, Star City Branch, Hermitage Branch, Wilmar Branch, Gould Branch, Warren Branch, Eudora (Tiebel) Branch, Ark. City Branch, McGehee Branch, Tillar Branch; Chancery Clerk, Bolivar County Courthouse, Cleveland, Miss.; Chancery Clerk, Bolivar County Courthouse, Rosedale, Miss.; Cleveland/Bolivar County Chamber of Commerce, 600 Third Street, Cleveland, Miss.; South Delta Planning and Development District, 124 Broadway, Greenville, Miss.

The hearings on Sept. 27 and 28 will be open forums – allowing concerned citizens to attend at any time between the hours of 4 and 7 p.m. Brief formal presentations will be made by the consultant at 4:15, 5:15 and 6:15. Written comments will be accepted, and transcribers will be available to take verbal comments. Copies of the DEIS and SDEIS will be available for review at both hearings.

Persons wishing to submit written statements or other exhibits in place of or in addition to oral or written statements made at the public hearing may submit them to Jerry Mugg, HNTB Corporation, 1201 Walnut, Suite 700, Kansas City, Missouri, 64106. Such submissions must be received no later than 5 p.m. Oct. 25, 1999.

The Great River Bridge study is being conducted by HNTB Corporation on behalf of AHTD and FHWA, in cooperation with MDOT and other cooperating agencies, including U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.

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