THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 12, 1996 TAG: 9605120147
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TONI WHITT, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PORTSMOUTH LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
Norfolk has promised money it might have used for its own road projects to help get a highway built in Portsmouth.
As a result of this unprecedented regional cooperation, state officials said, the long-sought Pinners Point Connector has made it onto Virginia's proposed six-year construction plans.
Richard Hollis, an urban engineer with the state transportation department, said this is the first time one city has helped fund a highway project totally outside its borders.
``Two things made this happen,'' said Portsmouth Mayor Gloria O. Webb, who has been working on the project for two terms as mayor. ``We both agreed to spend a percentage of money, and it was a cooperative effort between the two cities.''
Norfolk Mayor Paul D. Fraim said the road is vital - not only to Portsmouth but also to the entire area.
``Its importance to the region is not a matter of debate,'' Fraim said. ``It was a unique regional initiative, and that's the way the council thought we should go.''
The project is ``definitely of regional significance,'' Hollis said. ``It provides improved access to the port authorities . . . and provides a missing link in the freeway system.''
The Pinners Point Connector will link the West Norfolk Bridge with the Martin Luther King Freeway and the Midtown Tunnel.
Portsmouth wins because the project will help alleviate traffic in its historic neighborhoods, provide easier port access to industrial truck traffic, and connect the Midtown Tunnel to the growing suburban areas of Churchland, Western Branch and Suffolk.
Norfolk wins because the connector will ease traffic congestion on Hampton Boulevard, which feeds the Midtown Tunnel, and provide better access to downtown Norfolk.
The road, to cost $119 million, will be built as a toll facility, state officials say.
The state plans to conduct a traffic and finance study this summer to help determine the amount of tolls, Hollis said. The possibilities include a 25-cent or a 50-cent toll.
Tolls will be placed only on the new section of road, not the Midtown Tunnel or the Martin Luther King Freeway, he said. Exactly where the tolls will be located will be based on engineering and traffic studies. The state will hold a public hearing on the road's design in the fall.
Financing also will come from state, federal and local money.
Norfolk will kick in $2.5 million - $500,000 a year over five years; Portsmouth will contribute $5 million over the five years. They'll be using urban allocation funds from the state, money designated for road projects in urban areas.
Hollis said the state will use $55 million from a toll-facilities revolving account to help pay for the project's construction. The tolls will be used to repay that money.
``That way we don't have to borrow money and don't have to pay interest,'' Hollis said.
``We haven't ironed out all of the financial aspects, but we're well into the design stage that has been going on for a number of years,'' Hollis said.
The state Transportation Commission is expected to approve the six-year plan next month. MEMO: Staff writer Lon Wagner contributed to this report. by CNB