Route of U.S. 30 won't be decided for years

Two years.

Dodge County, Fremont and North Bend officials will have to wait at least that long to see which route - if any - will be chosen for an expanded U.S. Highway 30.

Nebraska Department of Roads officials said the agency is seeking a firm to conduct an environmental impact study on the three options still on the table: One that mostly will follow County Road S, one that mostly follows the current route of U.S. 30 and one that makes no changes at all.

“We're getting requests for proposals right now and trying to determine what kind of survey we need,” said Tim Weander, DOR District 2 engineer. “We're still two years away from the impact study being finished.”

It took 2,700 hours of mediation time to get to this point.

Greg Michaud, manager of environmental services for Johnson, Depp & Quisenberry of Springfield, Ill., led a group that included himself, another mediator and two engineers through a series of meetings with a 15-member advisory panel to determine the best choice for the expanded highway.

In December, that panel voted 9-6 to recommend the County Road S route.

Michaud said mediation was a two-year process between all the entities and that the advisory panel was careful in analyzing all the issues. And it's not uncommon for a divided decision.

“In highway construction, you never have a highway alternative that everyone says, ‘Yep, I like this route,'” Michaud said. “We often find that we'll go into a community and you don't even get the majority of the population to agree on one alternative.”

While the impact study is being done, there will be time to continue discussing issues such as drainage. That's one of the concerns of Ames farmer Bill Taylor.

Taylor, a fourth-generation farmer, is a member of the North Bend Drainage Board. He voted against the panel's recommended route for several reasons, including increased property taxes and drainage.

“I don't want to be taxed out of farming,” said Taylor, who farms with his sons, Zachary and Justin. “I'm all for progress but we can't overburden our kids and grandkids with these expenses we create.”

Drainage is another concern.

“This ground is very flat and low,” Taylor said. “This (option) is going to ruin our drainage system.”

That's part of the reason the environmental impact studies will be done. And that's why we're still at least two years away from a decision.