Thursday, March 2, 2000 Turnpike Commission's beltway plans entering third stage BY TERRI T. JOHNSON THE OBSERVER-REPORTER Plans for the proposed Southern Beltway are marching eastward. In late March or early April, the state Turnpike Commission will mail intent-to-enter letters to 537 property owners in southeastern Cecil Township, northwestern North Strabane Township and portions of Canonsburg Borough and Peters Township. All are on the eastern side of Interstate 79. The letters will notify owners that representatives of the Turnpike Commission may enter their properties for inspections to verify information for environmental impact studies, according to Joe Agnello, commission spokesman. Representatives are permitted to enter private property without the owner's permission under the state's eminent domain laws. Property owners in the northern sections of Cecil Township, including the Gladden Heights area, and owners in McDonald Borough and Robinson Township - all on the western side of I-79 - received similar letters in the past several weeks. The Southern Beltway is planned to connect Pittsburgh International Airport to the Mon/Fayette Expressway and is divided into three sections. The first phase - from Route 60 near the airport to the Route 22/30 area - is in the most advanced stage. The second, or middle, stage covers an area from Route 22/30 to I-79. Property owners in Gladden Heights and McDonald are in the middle section. "Each (section) is separate and has its own independent utility, and they don't rely on the project next to them," Agnello said. The letters to be mailed in the next several weeks will be to property owners in the third, or final, stage stretching from I-79 to the expressway. "The mailings at the end of the month or early April are only covering about the first 40 percent of the project area from I-79 east," Agnello said. "The borderline is sort of around the border of Nottingham and North Strabane, in that area. Initially, we're going to look at the western 40 percent of this area, as far as field work goes." Representatives from the Turnpike Commission will meet with North Strabane Township officials - as they do with all affected municipalities - before the letters are mailed, Agnello said. No date has been set to mail an additional 400 letters to property owners in Nottingham and Union townships and Finleyville Borough. As for the upcoming 537 letters, Agnello said only a small number of properties in Peters Township and Canonsburg will be included. "We could be using a part of I-79 and be shooting off in Canonsburg through North Strabane into Nottingham," Agnello said. He stressed no final routes have been selected. As for Peters Township, Agnello said, "We're talking about property in the Canonsburg Lake area, so it's only a small part of Peters." Verifying information - such as the location of churches, cemeteries, parks and wetlands - is required if the project is to qualify for federal funds, according to Agnello. "We can't start the final design until we have the environmental clearance," he said. Initially, the Turnpike Commission announced a preferred route for the middle section would be released this summer. However, the release has been pushed back to late this year. "In the general draft, we do usually have a recommended, preferred alignment in it, but ultimately the Federal Highway Administration has to approve it," Agnello said. The alignment is not finalized until approval of the final environmental impact statement, which Agnello said will not occur until 2001. "Then, we'll do the final design and property acquisition and utility relocations. Then we'll be ready to build the road." Copyright ©2000 Observer Publishing Co. Last updated Thursday, March 2, 2000