ARNOLD, Mo. — A $75 million project is being planned for Arnold to build a nearly two-mile road network to connect Richardson Road to Highway 141. It is expected to be a topic of discussion among the public at Thursday's city council meeting.
The new two-lane road will start south at Richardson Road and run north, parallel to Interstate 55, with Church Road as the dividing line, according to City Administrator Bryan Richison.
Drivers can continue on Michigan Avenue with additional roads to be built from there, connecting to Highway 141, going east to Jeffco Boulevard.
With traffic volumes on the rise, the Arnold Parkway will provide alternate routes and a bypass to ease congestion and reduce vehicle crashes in the area, according to the project’s website.
The parkway will connect the two I-55 interchanges within Arnold’s city limits, which will direct traffic flow from outside the region, in north and south directions, through business districts and shopping areas.
This also will improve emergency response times, reduce traffic amid I-55 closures and provide detours during other road closures and natural disasters.
Arnold Parkway will be funded by the city of Arnold and the Arnold Retail Corridor Transportation Development District (ARC TDD) will issue a bond with no tax increase.
The project would be out for bid next August with demolition tentative for the fall, and construction of the road starting in 2026.
Richison said city officials hope the road will prompt residential subdivisions in the south leg and attract commercial development in the northern leg.
The southern section would start at Richardson Road and end at Church Road.
“This road will provide better access to some undeveloped land in that area that currently is difficult to get to with existing roads,” Richison said.
“It’s pretty hilly terrain through there, so we suspect that home builders will be more interested in that area to build subdivisions because they can deal with the hilly terrain better than a commercial developer can.”
City officials plan to purchase CubeSmart Self Storage, 3401 Robinson Road, that is located at the beginning of the southern leg.
The rest of the southern portion of Arnold Parkway can be built with easements and rights-of-way from the Missouri Department of Transportation.
The northern section would begin where Arnold Parkway crosses with Church Road, on the opposite side of Michigan Avenue, creating a four-way intersection. Richison said traffic lights would be installed.
The city would need to acquire approximately 41 homes and 10 businesses to continue the northern leg of the road.
The businesses include Sugar Fire, Las Fuentes, Trek Bicycle, among others.
Richison said offers have been made to purchase the properties. So far, the city has bought about three homes.
For updates and more information, visit the Arnold Parkway website.