Letter to the editor of the Post-Dispatch, published 9/21/09:

Regarding "Chesterfield accepts 141 work, tries to limit impact" (Sept. 13): Here are some questions that everyone should be asking about the Highway 141 project:

— What health problems will occur from routing a six-lane highway directly over an open source for our drinking water?

— How was the Missouri Department of Transportation able to use an expired environmental assessment that doesn't include any newer development?

— What will happen when construction stirs up toxic chemicals in the soil and creek from Parkway's non-regulated reclamation facility?

— Why isn't the mayor insisting an environmental impact statement be done?

— There are legal appeals and lawsuits pending, so what happens when the deadlines for federal funding can't be met?

— St. Louis County and MoDOT have not acquired all the land needed; how are they able to start construction and how much land are they planning to condemn and take by eminent domain?

— How can they start construction when all permits needed are not secured?

— Do Chesterfield residents know they are paying $15 million for this extension, $10 million for prettier bricks and $5 million for the northern section of the road itself. That is on top of the money they are paying as a resident of the county. How much more are we going to take? The mayor of Chesterfield tells us not to fight because that makes it easier for him, but it doesn't mean we shouldn't fight. The question isn't why we would fight; it's why wouldn't we?

Kim Cuddeback — Maryland Heights
Co-founder, Maryland Heights Residents for Responsible Growth