$5 million middle school intersection project approved

By MIKE WILLIAMS

Patriot Publishing

In mid-February of 2018, the Pulaski County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution urging VDOT to “timely authorize and approve the design and installation of a traffic signal” at the intersection of Route 11 and Thornspring Road.

The hoped for result of that action was for the construction of the “preferred entrance” into the then planned Pulaski County Middle School.

Finally, after eight years – six of those years following completion of the school – the county has the go-ahead and the money to begin construction on the intersection – possibly as early as next spring.

County Finance Director Justin Martin explained Monday night during a public hearing the Route 11 and Thornspring Road Intersection Signalization Project that the cost totals just over $4.9 million and includes a 50 percent ($2,467,764) matching grant received from VDOT.

Martin said the rest of the funding includes $1,912,000 of bond proceeds that were left after the construction of the school coming from county reserves, along with $524,906 the schools set aside and returned to the county specifically to be put towards the project.

Martin said it is anticipated that between now and payment of the project, the county will receive another approximately $30,000 in interest the bond proceeds will earn, which would bring the county total to $2,467,764.

County Administrator Jonathan Sweet said the project is “one of the largest investments in school safety that the county has made from a single investment standpoint.”

“It’s been in the works for quite some time, as you all are fully aware. As it’s been a priority project for this board, I know it’s been a priority project for Mr. (Mike) Mooney (Massie District representative on the board) representing school safety for the Board of Supervisors, and we’re finally taking a giant step forward,” said Sweet.

‘It’s a very exciting opportunity to not only enhance school safety but pedestrian and traffic safety along Route 11,” Sweet continued.

He then introduced the county’s new engineer, Nelson Pendleton, who as engineer will serve as manager of the project.

Sweet said Pendleton is a Virginia Military Institute graduate and an Air Force veteran, who came to the county by way of the National Park Service.

Pendleton told the board the purpose of the intersection project is to improve the student safety, reduce some of the peak hour congestion, and manage the traffic turning movements at that busy intersection.

“The scope includes the signal design, utility coordination, civil construction, the system activation, and of course the new paved entrance to the middle school,” he said.

“We’ve completed the conceptual design and the signal justification report in August of 2025. We’re just about ready to award the task order for the preliminary design tomorrow. That will be completed this winter, and then next spring or next year we’ll move straight into construction for the project,” Pendleton said.

Sweet lauded the supervisors for their approach to funding the intersection project.

“The board’s approach to this project effectively saved the taxpayers of Pulaski County – because we were not successful with the Smart Scale approach (through VDOT) – about  $27 million dollars,” stated Sweet.

“So, you’re getting a project done, and it’s saving us about $27 million, and then successfully with this revised revenue sharing approach, you’re saving the taxpayers another two and a half million dollars.

“So, I just commend the board. Without me sharing this, the general public may not know of the iterations that have taken place to get us to this point and the hard work that’s been put in with respect to re-engineering this, so I want to congratulate the board.

“This is almost a $5 million project, but technically it would have been a $30 million project if not for your patience and your direction on how to proceed with this? So, we appreciate you as staff and as taxpayers,” Sweet said.

“We appreciate all the work that staff put in to be able to get this done and save that money, because we were sort of scratching our heads, I think, about how we were going to be able to do this for the safety of our children. So, thank you guys very much, all of you,” said Board Chairman Laura Walters.

“This has been a priority for me since I was voted on this board,” said Mooney.

“You know, I just want to thank the board members, the staff, and everyone involved for all their hard work on making this thing come to life. It’s taken a while. Just like Mr. Sweet said earlier, the price was so far out of sight. You know, it was hard for us to see it. But we’ve made adjustments. We’ve come up with new plans, and I think we’ve got a good solid plan.

“You know, it’s this project that’s going to save lives over there at the middle school, and that’s what I look at. It’s going to give our students, our parents, our teachers, our staff a safe way to enter and exit that middle school. And you know, we should have had this a long time ago, but it’s taken a while, I agree, but it’s not because it hasn’t been worked on. Everybody here’s worked hard on it, and I want to thank VDOT for coming through with their share of it, and again for this board for supporting this project. I can’t thank you enough because it means a lot to me. You know I’ve got four grandkids in these public schools, and their safety and the safety of the teachers and everyone means a lot to me.”

The project calls for turn lanes in each direction along Route 11 north and south at the intersection in front of Cougar Express, with Thornspring Road extended through the intersection onto the middle school property in the area of the current football field and track. The road would bend in order to connect with the current roadway at the school next to the parking lot.