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Clemmons has stake in stimulus package
Idols Road project awaits money; it already has been designed and been OK'd
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Published: February 10, 2009
CLEMMONS
Count the Village of Clemmons among those local governments that would like to get a bit of the public-works money in the $800 billion federal economic-stimulus plan.
Village officials are hoping that the stimulus package could breathe new life into a long-awaited but unfinanced project to extend Idols Road.
An $838 billion economic stimulus bill backed by the White House narrowly advanced in the Senate yesterday over strong Republican opposition. A vote on the bill is expected today.
Work on extending the road from Hampton Road east to U.S. 158, where Stratford Road enters Clemmons, has been on the N.C. Department of Transportation's books for more than 20 years.
It has been through all the required hearings, rights of way have been acquired, and the road has been designed.
Construction was set to begin in 2007, but a DOT budget shortfall has left the project in limbo -- approved, but with no money available to build it.
"Quite frankly it is just not one of our top priorities," said Pat Ivey, a division engineer for the DOT.
The extension remains on the DOT's long-range Transportation Improvement Program that runs through 2015, but is listed as an unfinanced project.
The estimated cost of construction is about $13 million.
The road is designed to help commuters in northern Davidson and southern Forsyth counties by taking many of them off Hampton Road.
The project would include traffic signals at both ends of the extension and four-foot shoulders to accommodate bikes and pedestrians.
The intersection of Idols and Hampton Roads would be realigned.
It's a potentially valuable connector for Clemmons, Mayor John Bost said.
Village officials are aiming to diversify the tax base, which historically has relied on residential and retail taxes. A commercial or light-industrial park in the connector area could help reach that goal of diversification, Bost said.
But it won't happen if there's not better transportation in the area, including access to Interstate 40. The connector would allow trucks using a business park to access I-40 by Stratford Road, avoiding the busy Lewisville-Clemmons Road corridor, Bost said.
The village is conducting a comprehensive plan designed to get residents' comments on how the village should grow. Bost said that those conversations will include what residents would like to see in the Idols Road corridor.
The bid for stimulus money would compete with other "shovel-ready" projects from across that state, said Village Manager Gary Looper. The City Council in Winston-Salem has a "wish list" that includes more than 80 potential projects that could be paid for with stimulus money.
■ Paul Garber can be reached at 727-7327 or at pgarber@wsjournal.com.
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