Presenter says environmental review nearly complete; Yandell Road construction planned for 2027

Lon Burt of Benchmark Engineering and Surveying gave an update on the Yandell Road intersection improvements project, telling attendees that federal environmental review experienced a brief holiday delay but should be complete by the end of this month or in February.

Burt said that environmental approval is the project’s critical path, after which the team will hold a right-of-way kickoff meeting and begin acquisition. "We're looking at 8 to 9 parcels around the intersection," he said, and added that the project is using an integrated right-of-way approach to try to limit property impacts where work overlaps with nearby projects.

Draft plats and legal survey documents are complete and will be shared informally this week, Burt said, noting that MDOT-side right-of-way processes cannot formally start until the environmental review is finished. He said the project team is optimistic it can finalize design later this year and move toward construction in 2027.

When asked about construction duration, Burt estimated the build will take about 18 months, possibly slightly less. He confirmed the work involves two bridges, describing the scope as widening one bridge and replacing the other.

An attendee raised a concern about traffic impacts during right-of-way work, noting there will be traffic problems when roadway sections are taken out of service. Burt did not provide a detailed traffic-management plan during the update.

Next steps the team outlined are completion of federal environmental approval, a right-of-way kickoff meeting, initiation of property acquisition, and continuing design work toward final plans and construction procurement.