FORT WAYNE – With public dollars becoming scarce, Indiana has begun turning to private industry to help maintain its transportation infrastructure. Allen County is home to one of the largest and newest examples of this partnership.
Parkview Health will pay the state $10 million to help cover the cost of a $24 million interchange on Interstate 69 at Union Chapel Road, according to documents released by the Indiana Department of Transportation in response to a public records request.
Robert Zier, transportation department chief of staff, said while the amount seems large, he is already working on even bigger deals in other parts of the state. As gas tax revenue shrinks with people driving more efficient vehicles, he said the state must use these public-private partnerships to help finance infrastructure work.
"The state just doesn't have the funding to build as much," he said.
These contributions are in sharp contrast to economic development initiatives where governments promise to construct infrastructure to lure private development and jobs. For example, the state upgraded a planned interchange on Interstate 469 to accommodate traffic from what was then a new General Motors plant.
The contribution by Parkview, however, could free the state from spending any of its money on the project, as Zier said he hopes the state can use federal highway money to pay for the rest of the interchange.
The state has done smaller cost-sharing projects locally, including partnering with Wal-Mart for improvements on Lima Road/Indiana 3 and with Carmike Cinemas on Dupont Road/Indiana 1.
Congestion relief
The need for a new interchange is mainly because of the congestion at I-69 and Dupont Road. That area of Dupont has seen traffic jump from 15,250 cars per day in 1997 to more than 26,000 vehicles daily.
The congestion will be exacerbated when Parkview's regional medical center opens in the spring of 2012. That will increase the medical center's employment from about 640 to 3,400 and add an estimated 4,000 vehicle trips each day, according to Parkview.
The contribution from Parkview may not be small, but it pales in comparison with the $536 million being invested in the new medical center. Mike Packnett, Parkview CEO, said the non-profit health system's board deemed the contribution an appropriate expense because of the additional traffic the complex would bring to the area.
Parkview previously committed $3 million over 10 years for naming rights to the downtown ballpark.
He said especially at rush hour the traffic already backs up on the interstate ramps, sometimes extending all the way to I-69 travel lanes.
Even before the hospital is complete, ambulances are having trouble negotiating through the congestion on Dupont, he said.
"We know there's a problem that exists at Dupont today," he said.
The state's recent traffic study gives Dupont at I-69 an F grade during evening peak hours, with delays of more than a minute. With no improvements, those delays are expected to double by 2030.
The interchange would provide relief and a second option for people trying to get to the hospital.
Accelerated progress
The state has been looking at relieving congestion in the area for several years, but until recently the focus was on building an interchange on I-69 near Gump and Hursh roads.
Zier said the idea to put an interchange farther south, at Union Chapel, originated with Parkview but was endorsed by the state. He said the health system's willingness to contribute helped.
"It got our attention," Zier said. "It would not be moving forward at this pace without that contribution. Our state dollars had already been allocated."
Accepting private money for a project also means allowing the private contributor to put some time constraints on the project.
A July 7 letter from Packnett to the state shows that Parkview's money is contingent upon the state's beginning construction by March 1, with a goal of completion by early 2012.
"Parkview is hopeful that, in the very least, exit ramps could be completed and open for travel within that timeframe," he wrote.
Packnett later said he understands it is unlikely the entire project will be done to coincide with the hospital's opening, but he hopes it can be done as quickly as possible.
Added assistance
Zier said putting another interchange so close to Dupont makes sense to help relieve traffic and promote growth in the area. It would not, however, eliminate the bottlenecks.
Adding the interchange would cut existing delays at Dupont to less than a minute, according to the state study, but traffic flow still would deteriorate to a failing grade at the southbound interchange by 2030. This is why Dan Avery, director of the local transportation planning agency, has been adamant the state also agree to fix the Dupont interchange.
The state has proposed a $2.35 million overhaul of the area to a diverging diamond interchange. Such an interchange would include two new signals at the northbound and southbound ramps and would have vehicles moving on the left side of Dupont for a short period to provide unimpeded left and right turns onto the interstate.
This work is scheduled for 2013. Avery said it makes sense not to start working on Dupont until the relief of the new interchange at Union Chapel is complete. He said there are also plans to add the Gump-Hursh interchange after 2020.
Property purchases
Building a new interchange takes more than money; it also requires land.
The state estimates it will spend $2 million buying property to build the project, likely meaning several homes will have to be removed.
Kay and Kenneth Bechler own one of those homes – a house Kenneth built in the 1960s.
While the couple isn't thrilled about giving up the home where they raised their family, they understand progress has a price, Kay Bechler said.
She said there's not much the couple can do when the state has made up its mind to buy land.
What is most concerning to the Bechlers is the unknown: Will their home be bought and when?
Not knowing that, Kay Bechler doesn't know when the couple should start looking for a new home or whether it makes sense to make any repairs on the existing one.
"You're more or less stuck," she said.
The state's Zier said the the local planning agency is set to vote on the construction today, allowing the state to move forward. A public hearing about the interchange would likely take place in January, giving residents the information they need.
The state will most likely begin purchasing property in mid-2011.
