Transportation Corp. Bonding Used to Speed Construction Project

Construction of the overpass is a joint venture between the state and the city of Fulton, where a public transportation corporation was formed. This funding, created by the state legislature, is making way for the Missouri Department of Transportation to begin construction at least two years earlier than expected. The overpass will be the third project in mid-Missouri to be funded by transportation corporation bonding.

The Lake of the Ozarks Community Bridge, which links the east and west sides of this 1,100 mile of shoreline lake, was the first project to use this funding back in 1998. More than $40 million in bonds were issued for its construction. The second project to use this funding was the extension of Missouri Highway 179 in Jefferson City.

In Fulton, nearly $9 million in bonds were needed to ensure the overpass would proceed quickly. The bonds were purchased within two hours, according to Fulton Mayor Robert Craghead. The two components of the plan call for the state to construct the overpass, estimated to cost about $6 million, while the city of Fulton will work to extend the outer road about a quarter mile leading to a new business district.

Projects underway near the overpass include a 1.2 million-sf Dollar General store distribution center, the Tanglewood Golf Course and a planned 32-acre high-tech business center. The Dollar General center project cost about $50 million and created about 400 jobs. Other projects along U.S. 54 corridor include a hotel, fast food restaurant and hardware store. An apartment complex is planned, as well as the business park, which is being proposed by GL & D Development out of Columbia.