Wagner Plea Defeated

Sen. Randy Deibart moved and Sen. Kyle Schoenfish seconded a substitute motion for the 41st day.

The South Dakota Department of Transportation (DOT) has proposed converting the current four-lane road — two lanes in each direction — into a three-lane highway with one lane in each direction and a middle turning lane.

The DOT proposal has received some local support but also a large measure of opposition. A petition drive last year collected 1,561 signatures in favor of saving the four-lane. Also, Wagner residents rejected the City Council’s support for the three-lane proposal by a 133-64 margin in a special city election last December.

As a way of expressing those local sentiments, State Sens. Shawn Bordeaux (D-Mission) and Erin Tobin (R-Winner) sponsored Senate Resolution 701 in the South Dakota Legislature. The resolution, which called for the DOT to reconsider its three-lane proposal, was assigned to the Senate Transportation Committee.

On Wednesday, the Transportation Committee heard an amended Resolution 701, which expressed support for the DOT’s four-lane alternative for Highway 46, a major travel artery across the state.

The Transportation Committee’s meeting was audio streamed, which the Press & Dakotan accessed. The board received testimony from Wagner residents supporting the resolution followed by the DOT’s Mike Behm answering committee questions.

Tobin addressed the committee, noting she sponsored the resolution in response to her District 21 constituents in Wagner and elsewhere.

“I want to urge the committee to look at the process and the open testimony and consider what this would mean for further negotiation (on local wishes) for communities across South Dakota,” she said.

District 21 Rep. Marty Overweg (R-Corsica), also speaking on behalf of District 21 Rep. Rocky Blare (R-(Ideal), spoke of the desire to find a solution that meets the needs of Wagner residents and those traveling through the area.

“I urge the committee to listen to the facts and fix this as best we can, that we get awareness today and something figured out,” Overweg said.

Prior to Wednesday’s vote, Vice Chair Jessica Castleberry expressed her concerns about the Legislature becoming involved in attempts to override a DOT decision. The South Dakota Transportation Commission, which holds final authority over highway funding and projects, has included the Highway 46 project on its five-year plan.

“I would like to thank the community of Wagner for sharing their thoughts and their concerns and struggles,” she said, noting the residents’ efforts. “But I also weigh that with knowing that our Highway Commission does a good job and that they have to weight a lot of concerns and a lot of different aspects for highways all over the state of South Dakota.”

Castleberry noted a resolution doesn’t change DOT decisions.

“As Senator (Larry) Zikmund alluded to, a Senate resolution is nice and a good way to communicate feelings,” she said. “(But) when it comes to what the reality is of whether it will actually have an impact, a resolution is a nice statement, but it really doesn’t carry any more weight than being a nice statement.”

Castleberry raised concerns about the resolution’s precedent.

“This is something where we look at, how can we insert the Legislature into the decision-making process for a commission?” she asked. “And is that something we want to set a precedent for? And do we really have the authority? That’s the question this committee has to consider as it votes today.”

The majority of her fellow committee members chose not to send the resolution to the Senate floor. Besides Castleberry, “aye” votes to defer the measure were cast by Deibart, Schoenfish and Liz Larson. The “no” votes were cast by Sens. Arch Beal and Zikmund. The seventh member, committee chairman Sen. Josh Klumb, was excused from the meeting.

The DOT’s Mike Behm said the proposed Wagner project takes into account both motorists and pedestrians. The department remains firm in its support for the three-lane project as meeting all needs at the best use of taxpayers’ dollars.

The Transportation Commission made its decision after a hearing lasting about an hour, including passionate testimony from Wagner residents opposing the three-lane proposal.

Those concerns ranged from the impact on businesses and pedestrians to feelings that local residents’ voices have not been heard.

During the latter part of the hearing, the DOT’s Behm provided answers on why his department believes the three-lane conversion offers the best option for decades to come. He emphasized that the DOT has conducted a number of public meetings and listened to residents’ concerns.

The hour-long meeting included testimony from about a half-dozen Wagner residents.

One businessman, whose name was unavailable, said he holds “the utmost respect” for the DOT staff, including the Mitchell regional office overseeing the project.

“We simply vastly disagree on the picture of the traffic needs in the Wagner area, and we’re extremely passionate about this issue that will affect us for the next 30 to 40 years,” he said.

The DOT has listed safety as a major concern, and Wagner residents agree but feel the current four-lane is the right choice, the man said.

Wagner resident Leo Soukup spoke about his concerns with local safety, given what he termed the narrower highway, while Jeff Stewart said the DOT should respect local feelings on the project. He pointed to the current crash statistics for the four-lane Highway 46 that are favorable compared to similar roadways.

Dana Sanderson, a retired Wagner school counselor, said he was visiting a South Dakota community that had undergone a similar conversion from four lanes to three lanes on their highway. During his conversations with those community’s residents, he received strong negative comments about the three-lane configuration.

The committee received other oral and written testimony from Wagner residents.

The DOT is looking at two years for construction, Behm added.

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