The long-planned widening of NC-150 in Catawba County won't break ground until at least 2028, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT).
The project is “[will] accommodate current and future traffic volumes and reduce traffic congestion,” says the NCDOT. The Catawba County portion of the project will widen NC-150 to four lanes between NC-16 bypass and Greenwood Road. The Iredell County portion will widen the road to between four and ten lanes between Greenwood Road and NC-21 in Mooresville.
The project is unrelated to the turn-lane expansion that was recently completed at the intersection of NC-16 business and NC-150, which was constructed by Lennar for the Shannon Woods development, according to the NCDOT.
The NCDOT releases a statewide road improvement budget called the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) roughly every two years. The current STIP only provides construction funding for the Iredell County portion of the NC-150 expansion project, which broke ground in July and is expected to cost over $311 million.
“Our focus right now is on the Iredell County portion of NC 150,” said Jennifer Goodwin, NCDOT communications officer.
The completed project in Catawba County is expected to cost $371 million. The current STIP, which was adopted on July 9th, does provide preliminary engineering funding for the Catawba County portion of the road expansion, which includes surveying, layout planning, and coordination with other agencies.
“With the project being funded for Preliminary Engineering only in the [current] STIP, we don’t know at this time when the project will be constructed,” Goodwin said.
The STIP is open to public input. The public input period for the 2028 STIP began on July 27th and ended on August 28th. There will be another public input period in 2027.
“The [current] STIP will not change, but the project will recompete for construction funding in the current round of prioritization for the STIP [starting in 2028],” Goodwin said.
The NCDOT previously drew preliminary maps for the expansion in 2014 and 2016, including several alternate maps designed to bypass the now-defunct Terrell Historic District. These maps are still available on the NCDOT website, but are subject to change before the project breaks ground.
“The final alignment [of the road] hasn’t been determined yet,” Goodwin said. “At the time of the public meeting in 2016, there were buildings designated as historical [in Terrell] along the existing NC 150 alignment. They have since been removed by the property owners.”
If the alignment remains the same or similar to the 2014-2016 maps, the expanded road will pave over numerous local businesses, including popular restaurants such as Boss Hog BBQ, Lineberger’s Steakhouse, and Butcher Boy Cafe.
“It's been talked about ever since I first started in 2012,” said Dana Lineberger Berry, owner of Keys & Strings LKN, a music business located in the affected area. “I have heard that it was gonna happen, but I've been hearing that for so many years. I haven't allowed myself to worry about it, because I always feel like it's in such a distant future.”
Amid the continual rise in property values, local businesses say that it may be difficult to find alternate locations.
“I don't know what would happen as far as this business if that happens,” Dana said. “I'm not sure, because the rent is so high everywhere else. I'm just not sure. I don't know what I would do in that case.”
For more information on the project, visit the NCDOT’s website at www.ncdot.gov/projects/nc-150.
Why? What did we do wrong? Must be we voted Republican for governor and the vindictive Democrat governor wants to punish us—again…
But why aren’t our state legislators fighting for us in Catawba County???