Letter to the Editor

My name is Terry Sampson, and I’m a lifelong resident of Hannibal. Many changes have taken place during those years, especially along the Highway 61 corridor through town.
My point in writing this letter is to show my total commitment/support for the Hannibal Expressway/ Bypass. I totally understand the issues associated with this project, but I strongly feel the bottom line of safety and fluidity of travel
outweighs the opposing concerns. Like Kirksville and Maryville bypasses in Missouri, Hannibal is a destination community and the people wanting to
come here will do so. I have always been involved with the Hannibal schools and from a personal standpoint my children work there, and my grandchildren are students. I worry frequently about the school traffic and the number of trucks, hazardous material and other related traffic counts bring.
I know some businesses could be impacted, but I think most Hannibal business owners rely on local customers who will still frequent said stores. Access will still be available to existing 61 at the north end, at 24/36, and at route M on the south end.
I also fully understand the people concerned with losing farm ground, homes or other realty rights associated with the project. I worked for 30+ years with the Missouri Department of Transportation, primarily in land acquisition. I
was the statewide director of Right of Way for the last 5 years of my employment. I also served as Executive Director of the Hannibal Area
Chamber of Commerce. Unfortunately, with any road project, utility or other infrastructure someone is affected by this. However, I also know that this process follows the law of the land (Uniform Relocation Act) to ensure these
people are dealt with fairly and equitably.
Appraisals are completed, written offers of compensation are made, appraisals are handed to the property owners, and if necessary, mediation and negotiations are available to work out differences in opinions of value. They pay a 50% bonus for property owned by the same family for 50+years for heritage over market value, and 25% compensation bonus for taking the owner’s home over market value. Finally, individuals displaced or caused to move items of personal property are entitled to moving cost payment and possible replacement housing or rental subsidy payments if the new home or rental costs more than the amount compensated, as well as incidental costs.
I also would prefer this to be paid for without the additional sales tax, but that isn’t going to happen. I firmly believe this needs to happen and support this project to make our community safer. The Avenue of the Saints is intended to be uninterrupted travel and remove traffic safety issues such as the daily traffic count of 20 to 25 thousand vehicles per day passing through this corridor, 23% being trucks and/or large commercial vehicles. The accident rate is high and 21.2% of all crashes involve a commercial vehicle, more than double the state average. Let’s protect our students and citizens.
Terry Sampson, Hannibal