Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Transportation Infrastructure topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Lee's Summit committee urges Jefferson City push for I‑470/Route 291 fixes, flags land‑conveyance bills
Summary
At a Jan. meeting, Lee's Summit's Legislative Intergovernmental Relations Committee discussed two land‑conveyance bills tied to MoDOT property, plans for a Jefferson City visit to press for I‑470/Route 291 congestion funding, and directed staff and lobbyists to update materials and arrange legislative meetings.
The City of Lee's Summit Legislative Intergovernmental Relations Committee on Jan. 13 discussed land‑conveyance legislation and prioritized a Jefferson City visit to press for state and federal help addressing chronic congestion where I‑470 connects with Route 291.
Committee members, lobbyists and staff concentrated on a house land‑conveyance bill filed by a local representative (house bill number not specified) and the companion Senate Bill 247, both intended to transfer state property to the city for local projects. John Hensley, lobbyist, said the Missouri General Assembly had “gaveled back in last Wednesday,” and flagged the bills as early priorities for the city.
The committee focused most of its discussion on recurring rush‑hour backups at the I‑470/Route 291/Colburn Road area. Mayor Bill Baird said the city is preparing a slide deck and updated cost estimates to use during an in‑person legislative advocacy day in Jefferson City during the Missouri Municipal League event in mid‑February. Council Member Lovell and others urged staff to refine the packet and to collect data, such as Missouri State Highway Patrol call statistics, to bolster the request.
Zach Pollock, lobbyist, said land conveyances were “kind of the focus right now” and noted MoDOT wrote the base language of the conveyance bill. City staff and council members described local development — including Discovery Park and the Commerce Center build‑outs — as drivers of added traffic through the corridor, and said the area lacks a clear funding source for needed expansion. The packet the city plans to take to Jefferson City includes an estimated MoDOT figure of roughly $138,000,000 as a ballpark for widening and shoulder replacement; the committee described that figure as an estimate that needs updating before meetings with federal or state representatives.
Committee members directed staff and the city's lobbyists to: update and condense the slide deck with current cost and project data; pursue Highway Patrol statistics and other evidence of congestion; and arrange meetings with Representative John Patterson (Speaker of the Missouri House), other area representatives, and the city's senator contacts. Hensley and Pollock agreed to help schedule and coordinate legislative meetings during the MML session.
Formal procedural business included two unanimous procedural votes: approval of the meeting agenda and approval of the committee's Dec. 9 action letter. The committee noted the next committee meeting is scheduled for Feb. 10 and that the group will seek to present a polished packet during the Feb. 18 MML legislative day in Jefferson City.
Why it matters: The corridor where I‑470 meets Route 291 is a daily bottleneck for commuters, emergency response and airport access; the committee framed a state partnership and conveyance of MoDOT property as prerequisites to local improvements and asked lobbyists to press the city's case at the start of the legislative session.
Votes at a glance
- Motion to approve the meeting agenda — mover: Council Member Pryor; second: not specified in transcript; roll call recorded Mayor Bill Baird Aye, Council Member Lovell Aye, Council Member Pryor Aye. Outcome: approved.
- Motion to approve action letter from Dec. 9 Legislative Intergovernmental Relations Committee meeting — mover: Council Member Lovell; second: Council Member Pryor; recorded roll call: Council Member Pryor Aye, Mayor Bill Baird Aye, Council Member Lovell Aye. Outcome: approved.
Sources and attribution
Speakers and staff quoted or paraphrased in this article appear in the meeting transcript and the committee's discussion: Mayor Bill Baird; John Hensley, lobbyist; Zach Pollock, lobbyist; Council Member Lovell; Council Member Pryor; Brian (city staff); Michael Park (city staff); Crystal Weber (staff). Direct quotes are attributed to those individuals when used in the body. The house land‑conveyance bill number was not specified in the transcript; the companion was identified as Senate Bill 247.
