Homeowners in North County are questioning MoDOT’s sound barrier plan

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – Some homeowners in northern St. Louis County are trying to put the brakes on a MoDOT sound barrier project.

Noise barriers have raised concerns for many people in the Hathaway Manor North Subdivision near Interstate 270 and Old Halls Ferry Road. Concerned residents fear the walls could pose a safety risk and impact the value of their homes.

Curtis Faulker says there are major traffic issues that will be made worse by the wall.

“It blocks the view of people coming off the highway at 60 miles per hour, and it also blocks the view of people entering Dunn Road,” Faulker said. “You can’t see the traffic slowing down either.”

The baffles would be about 12 to 20 feet tall. Plans for the sound walls came with the I-270 North Improvement Project. There are already sound barriers on one side of Interstate 270. The baffles will cost around $46,000.

According to MoDOT, they are required by federal law to determine whether people affected by increased road noise want noise reduction measures such as noise barriers. MoDOT conducted a neighborhood survey. They apparently got 18 “yes” votes to move forward.

But residents against the sound barriers say they went out, collected their own names and got 25 “no” votes. They say some of the people who originally supported the idea have since changed their minds.

Some opponents claim MoDOT isn’t listening.

“I think we’re actually being ignored,” Tony Chestang said. “They gave us 24 hours to collect the petitions, so we rushed and got the petitions. We put it in the hands of the director of MoDOT, and now they’re telling us, ‘Okay, it’s a done deal.'”

“They could have been more open. They could have come and discussed this issue with us sooner and I think it would have been resolved much better,” Robbye Covington said.

They paid for it and then reached out to MoDOT for comment. They say they started contacting homeowners about the sound barriers two years ago. They also shared this statement:

“MoDOT received a majority of votes in favor of the noise barrier, and a decision was made to build a noise barrier that would benefit the homeowners and residents contacted.”

Meanwhile, homeowners are currently consulting with an attorney to see if they have a leg up in the fight against these sound barriers.