City to acquire final parcels for East-West Corridor

Oct 15, 2021

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Santa Rosa Wash along Farrell — This area of the Santa Rosa Wash will have a bridge across it when the city completes the East-West Parkway in early 2023. Construction on the $26 million project will begin in January 2022. [Brian Petersheim, Jr. photo]

The Maricopa City Council took the final steps in preparation for the construction of the initial portion of the East-West Corridor, which will connect State Route 347 with the Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway. The parkway eventually will run from SR347 to Interstate 10, giving residents of the south side of the city a more efficient route to connect with I-10.

City Manager Rick Horst said construction is scheduled to begin Jan. 10 and is tentatively set for completion March 6, 2023.

“The project includes building a bridge over the Santa Cruz Wash as part of the flood control measures in that area,” Horst said.

Map shows the five access points planned for the East-West Corridor. City of Maricopa image

The city will have to acquire eight parcels totaling about 69 acres to have the full right of way for the 1.6-mile project which will run just south of Farrell between SR347 and Porter Road. The uses for the acquired parcels include rights of way, and construction and drainage easements.

Cost of the acquisitions has yet to be determined, as it is being taken through eminent domain and the current owners will be paid fair market value as determined by a judge. The project is estimated to cost $24-26 million, some of which will be offset by developer impact fees.

Horst said the roadway initially will be four lanes, but the acquisitions the city approved Tuesday will give it the ability to expand to six lanes in the future.

“We’re debating whether this needs to be a parkway per se, meaning six lanes at some future date,” Horst told InMaricopa earlier this year. “Our biggest fear is, what good would it do for it to be six lanes (on that stretch) and then from there east only four. We’re not sure that makes sense so we’re evaluating all that.”

The corridor is designed with several signalized intersections and Horst said it will include an elevated bridge over the Santa Rosa Wash. That will allow traffic to get across the wash in case of flooding, and eliminate traffic being stuck behind trains.

The high-speed corridor has been deemed essential by the city to keep up with traffic issues associated with the city’s rapid growth.

More info: City OKs $1M for East-West Corridor right of way – InMaricopa