Notice to Media

Public Hearings Scheduled to Discuss Proposed Great River Bridge

LITTLE ROCK (9-20) – 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 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, identical presentations will be held at 4:15, 5:15 and 6:15. Written comments will be accepted, and transcribers will be available to take verbal comments.

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.

Information about the proposed project is contained in a Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement, which is available for public inspection and copying at the following locations: U.S. Department of Transportation (FHWA), 666 North Street, Suite 105, Jackson, Miss.; U.S. Department of Transportation (FHWA), Federal Building, 700 W. Capitol, Room 3130, Little Rock, Ark.; 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 Great River Bridge study is being conducted by HNTB Corporation on behalf of AHTD, MDOT, and FHWA, along with 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.

####