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Chadwick Flyer Trail gains momentum

Work on two road crossings is in motion on way to connecting Springfield and Ozark

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A year after plans started to assemble for an estimated $8 million greenway trail between Springfield and Ozark, activity is picking up.

The Chadwick Flyer Trail, a 7.5-mile southern portion of a 17-mile rail line, is in the development phase. Nearly one mile of the trail has been built and funding is secured for two of its three major road crossings, said Mary Kromrey, executive director of Ozark Greenways Inc.

Kromrey and Jeremy Parsons, public works director for the city of Ozark, have been leading efforts to develop the trail for cyclists, joggers and walkers. They lead a visioning steering committee formed in April 2019. To connect the communities, organizers are working on a trail that runs from near the edge of Missouri Veterans Cemetery in Springfield south to nearly reach the Ozark Community Center, 1530 W. Jackson St.

Kromrey said the trail’s development will come in portions, adding there’s currently no projected completion date.

“Unfortunately, big projects like that don’t come with a start date and end date this far in advance,” Kromrey said. “When you’re working on trail projects in our region, they come on very much segment by segment.”

One segment completed is nearly 4,300 linear feet in Olde World Estates, an Ozark residential subdivision. The second phase of trail work by Kindrick-Counts Land Development LLC wrapped up in August, Parsons said. Developer David Counts previously told Springfield Business Journal he expected his trail investment to be around $290,000.

The trail’s exact alignment is still undetermined, as officials continue to seek easements from a handful of landowners. Discussions with some of the 16 landowners started in spring 2019, according to past SBJ reporting. Parsons said they’re about 75% through the process, with everyone granting easements so far.

“It’s a slow process,” Kromrey said, noting a couple of the remaining landowners live out of the area. “That’s just the nature of the beast when you’re working on a regional trail that’s spanning that many landowners.”

Jackson activity
One of the trail’s main crossings, Jackson Street in Ozark, is undergoing improvements for a $9.3 million widening project started in July by the Missouri Department of Transportation, Parsons said.

MoDOT’s work is in conjunction with Ozark’s $1.8 million Jackson Street project that includes over 4,000 linear feet of trails and two underpasses along the road to allow for bicycle and pedestrian connectivity on the Chadwick Flyer Trail. Ozark received an $870,000 grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation to help fund its efforts. Parsons expects the city and MoDOT’s Jackson Street projects to wrap by fall 2021.

“We identified the underpasses along Jackson as crucial. This was our one shot in maybe the next 30 years of improvement,” he said of timing the city’s work with MoDOT.

Although the Chadwick Flyer Trail runs close to Johnny Morris’ Finley Farms development in Ozark, which is just off Jackson Street, it doesn’t connect to it, Parsons said. However, the city is linking its existing Finley River Trail to Finley Farms – a project he said is being tackled at the same time as the Jackson Street improvements.

Along with the city matching over 50% of the Jackson Street project, the Ozark R-6 School District contributed $323,000. Superintendent Chris Bauman said the money came out of the school’s capital operating fund. The underpasses will increase safety for students traversing across Jackson Street, which will expand to five lanes.

Jackson, aka Route 14, is a main artery into Ozark from Highway 65, and the commercial stretch has the Ozark Junior High School, post office, a grocery store and restaurants along the path.

One of the underpasses is close to the junior high, 1109 W. Jackson St., while the other connects near Ozark Community Center, aka The OC.

“It really was a safety issue,” Bauman said, noting 20-40 children cross the street every school day. “Now, they can cross Jackson without any concern for their safety. That was really the biggest reason why we wanted to take the step as a school district.”

Looking ahead
Intersection improvements also are on tap in Ozark for Highway CC and Fremont Road, another crossing for the Chadwick Flyer Trail. Parsons said MoDOT is in final plan review for the work, which has an estimated $410,000 cost. Bids will be sought in January for the project, he said, noting Ozark received Transportation Alternatives Program funds and will pay roughly $82,000. Work is scheduled to finish by May 2021.

MoDOT also has been involved in discussions on getting the trail across Highway 65. With help from the Ozarks Transportation Organization, Kromrey said a new interchange proposal for the highway has been added to the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program.

“Getting something on the STIP makes it eligible for federal funding at some point in the future,” she said, noting funds are yet to be secured. “It doesn’t guarantee funding, but if a project isn’t on the STIP, then it’s a no-go. That was another crucial part of the process.”


Parsons said the consensus is pointing toward an overpass rather than an underpass in the area where the highway passes near Longview Road, south of the White River Marine Group plant in Ozark.

“Ultimately, it would accomplish more things to go over,” he said.

While the nearly 8-mile stretch of the Chadwick Flyer Trail is still likely years from being completed, Parsons and Kromrey are bullish on its progress.

“It’s kind of like an oxymoron with government to say ‘fast government project,’ but this one has really taken off at lightning speed,” Parsons said. “It’s a combination of very simply seeking the funding and the will of the people. People want these connections. They see the benefit on multiple levels.”

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