Business owners, family members urge Grain Valley to press MoDOT for Jefferson Street safety fixes

Andrea Elliott, co-owner of Elliott Glass on Eagles Ridge Boulevard, told the council that Jefferson Street is unsafe for employees, customers and delivery drivers and asked the board to be a louder voice to the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) for short-term safety improvements ahead of a planned I‑70 widening project.

"It is not a safe road. It needs guardrails. It needs to be maintained better," Elliott said and asked the council to support requests to MoDOT for guardrails, speed reductions and interim safety measures. She said the business community had collected signatures on an online petition and reported "over 12,000" Change.org signatures.

An unidentified speaker, identifying herself as the grandmother of Christian Lanier, addressed the council and urged immediate action to prevent further fatalities. She said petition pages (which she described as “over 14,000” signatures) had been placed on the council table and pressed for short-term measures such as a speed reminder sign or guardrail.

Council members and staff acknowledged the problem and noted MoDOT controls the roadway. Several aldermen asked what additional steps the city could take to press MoDOT or, if necessary, to assume responsibility for fixes — a question staff and the city attorney said would require further legal research because MoDOT owns the road and liability concerns arise if the city were to intervene.

No formal vote or motion directing staff to file legal action was taken; council asked staff and the city attorney to continue outreach to state representatives and to research possible next steps. The petition and community requests will remain an item for follow-up.