Pueblo Chieftain 07/17/03

The Pueblo Chieftain
Publish Date Tuesday July 15th, 2003

Puebloans in capital pushing second Chemical Depot road

By GAIL PITTS
THE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN

A Pueblo delegation is in Washington today seeking up to $16 million to fund county road upgrades to create a northern entry into Pueblo Chemical Depot.

County Commissioner John Klomp, County Public Works Director Greg Severance and former U.S. Rep. Ray Kogovsek, the county's lobbyist, flew to Washington Monday to meet with members of Congress to push for Defense Access Roads funding.

The three will meet with staff and members of the Colorado delegation including Reps. Scott McInnis and Joel Hefley and Sen. Wayne Allard, as well as Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., who is the ranking member on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

Allard serves on the House Armed Services Committee.

The delegation's aim is to get Pueblo included as a project in the Defense Access Roads schedule, administered by the Military Traffic Management Command under the Highways for National Defense Program.

They will make the case that the 10-year, $1.5 billion project to build a plant to destroy mustard agent munitions, destroy them and tear down the plant will cause large volumes and heavy-duty traffic along the roads which were not built for that kind of beating.

The estimate of up to $16 million includes making the entire road four lane, rather than two lanes if the Army determines the wider road is needed. As a two-lane project, the estimated cost would be $7.8 million. The estimates do not include construction of the 8.4-mile road within the depot itself.

The county and Colorado Department of Transportation are committed to nearly $3.2 million to build the extension of William White Boulevard from Pueblo industrial park to Colorado 47. Construction is expected to begin this fall.

But additional funds are needed to upgrade that road segment, plus United Avenue and Paul Harvey Boulevard, the county told members of the Citizens Advisory Commission to the depot's chemical demilitarization project earlier this year.

The northern route, which would extend to the northwestern corner of Pueblo Chemical Depot, is an alternative to a very expensive reconfiguration of the existing south entrance to the depot.

Klomp, who chairs the Citizens Advisory Commission, expressed the hope last week that the county could indeed get authorization for the funds.

The Defense Access Roads funds are not part of a specific amount of money available, but are military construction funds specifically budgeted, authorized and appropriated for justified DAR projects.