Turnpike authority promises to work with residents over expansion plans targeting their homes
Norman residents got their first opportunity Tuesday to confront the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority over plans to destroy hundreds of homes to make way for new toll roads.
About a dozen protesters, led by civil engineer Amy Cerato, showed up at the meeting to argue the expansion plan approved in January. The protesters said the plan, called ACCESS Oklahoma, was poorly thought out, has no threshold on how many lost homes is too many, and offers insufficient study on the impact to the area’s environment, water systems and eco-system.
The turnpike authority at the time promised mapped routes were not final and that engineers would listen to residents’ concerns and be transparent in planning and building the new roads. Cerato, however, questioned why flight records showed planes on Saturday flying over only the preliminary routes and why the authority is already hiring consultants to begin design work.
“These routes impact five times more families than any turnpike the authority has built in its history,” Cerato said. “We’re at 16 homes per mile. This the most destructive route you could take.”
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Cerato reminded the commission that displaced families will have a tough time finding a new home due to an ongoing housing shortage. She said 75 houses are currently for sale in Norman.
Cerato said she is ready to provide the commission with information and maps on alternative routes that would do less damage. She said the turnpike expansion as planned will cut through wetlands, varying elevations, a unique rose rock geological formation and the Lake Thunderbird watershed.
“There is no sound engineering justification for these proposed routes,” Cerato said. “There are better engineering routes that will be less impactful to people.”
Those supporting the turnpikes say they are needed to provide an alternative route for a stretch of Interstate 35 that remains congested after a $400 million rebuild and widening of the highway over the past 40 years. Oklahoma City’s population, meanwhile, has grown by 101,055 people since 2010.
Gene Love, chairman of the turnpike authority commission, and Tim Gatz, secretary for transportation, promised to give serious consideration to Cerato’s suggestions though they did not answer any of the questions asked during her presentation.
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Gatz said the taking of people’s properties through eminent domain is taken seriously as is the impact of new turnpikes on the environment.
“Our engineering team and I hope we can use Dr. Serato as a resource and can have an open line of communication with her,” Gatz said. “I have a commitment to do that. I think some of the things she brings up are the things the turnpike authority considers when doing any upgrade of the network.”
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Gatz also reminded residents ACCESS Oklahoma is a $5 billion program to be carried out over 15 years. He did not address questions about the timing of work related to property acquisition. Cerato told the commission they were convinced to kill a similar turnpike expansion in Norman more than a decade ago.
“The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority is a bad solution to an overstated traffic situation in a town that has twice said it doesn’t want to be separated,” Cerato said. ”I’m asking you to put the brakes on this project. I’m asking you to follow engineering protocols. I’m asking you to be good stewards of the land.”
Steve Lackmeyer started at The Oklahoman in 1990. He is an award-winning reporter, columnist and author who covers downtown Oklahoma City, urban development and economics for The Oklahoman. Contact him at slackmeyer@oklahoman.com. Please support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Norman residents address Oklahoma Turnpike Authority over expansion
