Residents Cite Traffic Concerns in New Development by Cor Jesu, Grant's Farm

McBride Berra LLC is planning a 50+ acre development with 124 new homes at Gravois Road and Musick Road, but neighbors say those roads are already holding all the traffic they can handle.

Cars cut through residential streets to avoid the often-clogged intersection at Gravois and Musick, a problem that is likely to increase with the addition of 124 new households, neighborhood residents told the St. Louis County Planning Commission at a public hearing Nov. 19.

And Musick Road dips downhill as it approaches Gravois Road and blocks visibility for cars coming over the summit, residents said.

"(Musick) road is very dangerous right now and the add of all this traffic, something has to be done," said Dave Heinrich, who has lived on Larkspur Drive for 28 years. "It has to be improved."

The planning commission meeting Monday was only a hearing. The commission will take a vote about approving the plan at their Dec. 3 meeting or later before passing the final decision to the St. Louis County Council.

Residents' concerns about traffic won't be answered until the St. Louis County Department of Highways and Traffic and the Missouri Department of Transportation give their final requirements for the property. MoDOT is waiting for the completion of a traffic impact study.

The Department of Highways and Traffic submitted a list of "special conditions" that should be met before it can approve the project. One of those conditions includes widening Musick Road:

...to one half of a 60-foot right-of-way and a 39-foot pavement and additoinal widening to provide a minimum 33-foot wide road surface for a left turn lane. 

The department also reccommends a sidewalk on Musick Road.

The developers have not yet met with the St. Louis County Department of Highways and Traffic, and the department's reccomendations were released the day of the planning commission hearing, said the lawyer representing the developers, John King.

Developers are trying to rezone the land to residential from agricultural to build 124 homes on 52.2 acres, giving about 2.3 lots per acre, King said.

Joan Edleson, director of the Affton Chamber of Commerce, said she hoped the addition of new mid- to luxury-level homes would help current businesses in the area and spur new ones. 

The homes will range in price from $275,000 to $600,000, with an average price of $350,000, King said.