The Pine Belt News
City Approves Final Funding For First Hall Avenue Train Overpass
By Haskel Burns
The City of Hattiesburg has completed the final financial step in building the overpass over the Canadian National train line in the East Jerusalem neighborhood, helping to alleviate traffic congestion caused by trains in several downtown Hattiesburg areas.
During Tuesday’s meeting of Hattiesburg City Council, council members approved the issuance of a general obligation bond in the amount of no more than $15.15 million.
The monies will help fund the extension of Hall Avenue in the form of an overpass for the Canadian National line, an additional spur for quicker transfers in the rail yard, and a digital messaging system to alert motorists for when a crossing is blocked.
“Since the city paid off debt last year, and paid off some other debt over the last couple of years, we wanted to make sure if we’re going to take out bond money, we’re not taking it out to pave streets and do routine maintenance that we should be able to with our regular budget,” Mayor Toby Barker said. “So trying to spend that money on game-changing projects for our city, like our (upcoming) police station, like an overpass.
“We anticipate that we’re going after some other grants soon to build a second overpass, so this would allow us to match money for both of those projects. So to get this through, to have a bond rating again, those are all very positive steps for our community, both in the short term ... and very much the long term.”
The project will begin in the East Jerusalem neighborhood at East Hardy and Gulfport streets and turn west, passing over the Canadian National line and ending at Bay Street and Hall Avenue.
The Hall Avenue section will consist of two lanes, a curb and gutter, a new drainage system and improvements to lighting and landscaping.
A traffic signal also will be installed at the intersection of East Hardy and Gulfport streets.
The design phase for the project is expected to last through the end of this year, with officials hoping to break ground by 2021.
The overpass also is expected to provide easier access for emergency personnel to the Hattiesburg Public Safety Complex on Hall Avenue, which upon completion will serve as the new home to Hattiesburg Police Department and the city’s municipal court.
In addition to the $15.15 million obligation bond, Sens. Roger Wicker and Cindy Hyde-Smith – along with Congressman Steven Palazzo – announced in March a $5.39 million grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements program to help with the overpass.
In total, the project will cost $11.9 million, with the grant providing the $5.39 million and the city matching its share of $6.59 million.
“We have 20 rail crossings in and around our downtown area, and if you live on one side of that and a train is blocking the way, you can’t get first responders there,” Barker said. “It hampers a lot of people getting from work and back home, and everyone in Hattiesburg knows the train issues we’ve had for decades.
“So to finally see the council, and to finally get help from our federal partners, to move on this issue – to deliver actual solutions to our folks – that's a win for Hattiesburg.”
Along with the East Jerusalem overpass, Barker has identified three other distinct areas in Hattiesburg with an abundance of trains that cause headaches for motorists, including another Canadian National line in the Mobile-Bouie neighborhood and two Norfolk Southern lines in downtown and near Scooba Street.
“We’re going after funding for the second overpass on Hall Avenue, that would cross the Norfolk-Southern line,” Barker said. “So this would actually allow the match money, if that federal money comes through as well.”