FORT WORTH -- Residents of the historic Oakhurst neighborhood just northeast of downtown were incensed to learn that the proposed Interstate 35W expansion would be moved closer to their homes because a Chesapeake natural gas well is on the other side of the road.
But nearly a year later, some of those residents feel much better about the multibillion-dollar project, which includes rebuilding the I-35W main lanes and adding toll lanes from Interstate 30 to Loop 820. They've been meeting with city and state officials in the past several months and discussing the installation of a wall and other improvements that could mitigate their concerns about noise and other effects."We're going to get some things done in consideration of the noise issue in our neighborhood," said Ginger Bason, president of the Oakhurst Neighborhood Association. "It looks like things are working out."On Tuesday night, residents will have a chance to vent their concerns and learn more about specific components of the project.The Texas Transportation Department is holding a public hearing on the project at Calvary Christian Academy. The hearing is required as part of a federal environmental review the agency must complete before including the I-35W work in the ongoing North Tarrant Express reconstruction project on nearby Loop 820.Change of plansResidents of Oakhurst, an 88-year-old neighborhood on a bluff overlooking the Trinity River Valley and downtown, are accustomed to traffic noise. Cars have been whizzing past the neighborhood's western edge since I-35W was built several decades ago.Many of the roughly 700 area homeowners supported the I-35W expansion, but they were furious last year when they learned that the Transportation Department had altered its project drawings and moved the highway frontage road lanes several feet closer to their neighborhood.Why?Several years ago, Chesapeake Energy developed a cluster of natural gas wells and an on-site compressor station near I-35W and Northside Drive, with the city's blessing.Later, when the department began getting serious about expanding the road, a Chesapeake official sent a letter to the agency warning that it would lose $9.4 million in tax revenue. Area residents said they were told buying the right of way from Chesapeake could cost the state roughly $50 million or more.Chesapeake wasn't told of a possible conflict with I-35W when the company submitted its plans for the wells, a spokesman said.So instead of trying to negotiate a potentially cost-prohibitive purchase of Chesapeake property, the department redrew the planned I-35W a few feet east, closer to Oakhurst."The geography presents some challenges," said Brian Barth, deputy district engineer for the department's Fort Worth district.But Barth said that though the new drawings placed the planned northbound frontage road a few feet closer to Oakhurst -- especially Calvary Cathedral International ---the work can be done on existing highway right of way.Noise concernsFrom I-30 to 28th Street, the state plans to rebuild the six main lanes of the freeway and add four toll lanes. The addition of frontage roads would double the width of the road to roughly 420 feet. From 28th to Loop 820, the plan is to rebuild the existing four main lanes and add four toll lanes.Because the city let Chesapeake drill on the land, the I-35W project likely will be built with mitigating features that could add tens of thousands of dollars in cost, including safety beams and landscaping.The city may be asked to pay for the add-ons, which typically fall outside the state's highway budget.But the state may be able to save money by moving the project a few feet east and building it on existing right of way, rather than buying some of Chesapeake's property on the west side of the road.Some residents have asked for a sound wall to protect Oakhurst from noise.A sound wall is not planned in that area, because the increased noise doesn't qualify under federal rules, Barth said.But city and state officials are working with residents to see what kind of barrier can be built outside the federal environmental process.Also, asphalt pavement rather than concrete may be used on the new lanes, which will decrease tire noise, Barth said.Gordon Dickson, 817-390-7796Twitter: @gdickson