Changes

As you all know a few weeks ago Ed and I attended a public hearing telling us about the hospital IHC wants to build just to the NorthWest of our home. We left that meeting feeling pretty good about being able to live with a hospital in our backyard.

Last night we attended another public hearing - this one concerning the Layton Interchange. This will also impact us in several ways - most of them positive: They (UDOT, FHWA, and Layton City, in conjunction with the public (!?) developed a plan to construct a new I-15 interchange at milepost #330 in Layton and a new roadway (called 750 S) from Fort Lane on the East to Flint Street on the West and eliminate the existing partial interchange. The new road will eventually continue West past Flint Street all the way to Bluff Road (and thus to the Legacy Highway) but that is all in the future as funds become available.
This map is probably too small to read but I will try to explain it to you. In the very center of the map you can see a crossroad (outlined in pink). That is the new proposed off ramp coming off the interchange showing a signal intersection at 200 East coming down and connecting into our street. If you look closely you can see where it says "connect 750 S to 200 E and you can see the church across the road from us. Our home is under the south.

Impacts:
1. the overpass from Layton to Kaysville will be torn down SOON so as to allow the freeway widening project now going on at 200 N in Kaysville to continue North. Hopefully they will not tear the bridge out until they have completed the work at 200 North - that is not a given, however.

2. Our main street in Layton will begin to elevate just past the corner of Gentile and Main raising to a 30 foot platform over the present freeway to give us a four way intersection. There will be a signalized intersection at Main and 750 South (yes, I know we are 744 South and this interchange will be a couple of blocks NORTH but that is what they are calling it). All traffic not moving onto the freeway will be shunted West towards Flint street or East to Fort Lane where it will meander back to the old main street by Dansies and proceed to Kaysville. This road will be a five lane highway.

3. 900 South railroad crossing will be removed and the road there will turn into a cul de sac. The new overpass will pass over I-15 and the railroad lines.

4. The 200 E connection to 750 South has us quite concerned as we can envision traffic to and from Blaine Jensen's RV using that road as an easy access to their business bringing large RV's and trucks and trailers - also our quiet little road will become a major entry way into the subdivision for the whole South West portion of Layton.

5. Potential for sound wall to be installed, however, the sound wall that would affect our subdivision would be installed and paid for by the Union Pacific rather than UDOT on the other side of the freeway because the UP has the land and right of way. I am thinking that if we have to depend on the UP for a sound wall, it ain't gonna happen!

5. Time frame. At optimal, if this proposal is accepted this summer by the FHWA (Federal Hwy Admin) they could begin work Fall of 2008 with completion by 2010 or early 2011.

6. With IHC also moving forward with plans to build the hospital in the fields West and North of us there is going to be a LOT of mess going on in the next few years! IHC wants the exit off 750 S into their parking lot but they don't want the road connected to 200 E - they want open parking lots there. We will see who wins that battle.

udot.utah.gov/laytoninterchange