The wide swath of excavated ground on the west side of Lamar Parkway south of CVS Pharmacy is not preparation for a new building as some observers have thought. The construction site is being prepared for a new road.
By the middle of July motorists are expected to have a second entry into the parking lot of one of the city’s most heavily travelled outdoor shopping centers, the Route 66 Marketplace, 2244-2248 West Osage.
The now under construction Route 66 Marketplace Road will allow entry to the parking area of three major stores off Lamar Parkway – B&H Market, Orscheln Home Store and Dollar General store. Expert Metal Fabricators is also located at the west end of the lot.
The new 32-foot wide, two lane, roadway will allow shoppers to enter and leave the shopping area from Lamar Parkway, opposite the LaMars New Town Center. Motorists will enter the Route 66 Marketplace parking lot immediately south of the front entrance to B&H Market.
Up to now the only entrance into the busy strip mall has been from heavily traveled West Osage (Route 66).
The new entry is expected to ease traffic flow, allowing shoppers from the south heading for the shopping area to avoid the traffic light at Osage and Lamar, and eliminating the need to travel onto Osage and face oncoming traffic to make the turn into the strip mall lot.
Currently there is also only one exit. Shoppers exiting the shopping area must pause on a steep slope as they wait for entry onto West Osage. Westbound motorist have to cross oncoming traffic.
Cochran Engineering was contracted to design the new roadway, including pavement, stormwater drainage, grading, utilities and access to properties. Cochran will also provide contract administration, construction inspection and material testing services for the construction phase of the project.
Construction cost of the project is $147,140. The engineering firm will be paid a lump sum fee of $19,128.20 for the design phase of the project and $14,346.15 for the construction inspection and testing phase of the project.
Total cost of the new entry road is projected at $180.614.
66 Market Place 2 LLC, which operates B&H Market, provided a general warranty deed for the roadway and public right-of-way and temporary construction easement deeds for the project.
The new entry road was originally located 250 feet north of the construction site, closer to the CVS Pharmacy entry from Lamar, but was reelected to the alignment that is under construction.
Motorists using the new entry road will enter the Route 66 Marketplace parking lot immediately south of the front entrance to B&H Market.
It used to be called Country Club Plaza, in reference to the golf course that was there in the 60’s
Also, the City had an extra added charge of $ 36,000 for soil stabilization because some one failed to do a simple inexpensive soil strength test during the planning stages.