Leftwich Announces Pole Road to Remain Open

Pole Road will continue to serve as an entrance to Crossroads Mall from Interstate 240 in South Oklahoma City, transportation officials have informed Sen. Debbe Leftwich, who fought to keep the Pole Road exit open when a new highway interchange design threatened to make shoppers drive a mile out of their way.

“Crossroads Mall plays an important role in my district, contributing to both the economy of South Oklahoma City and the quality of life for residents,” said Leftwich. “I’m very glad to hear that the Oklahoma Department of Transportation found a way to keep the mall’s number one entrance open.”

Located literally at the crossroads of the state, at the junction of I-35 and I-240, Crossroads Mall has been a landmark in South Oklahoma City for more than 30 years. Housing nearly 130 stores and eateries, the mall generates about $10 million in sales taxes and $826,000 in property tax annually. Between 1,300 and 1,800 employees work at Crossroads Mall depending on the time of year, with higher employment levels during the Christmas shopping season, and the mall’s adjacent property is home to a movie theater, a restaurant and two hotels.

Crossroads Mall endured a 12 percent reduction in foot traffic while a construction project to widen I-35 from four to six lanes near the mall was underway from April 2003 to May 2004, which temporarily closed various interstate ramps and roads closest to the mall. An upcoming phase of the I-35 widening project will reconstruct the interchanges between I-35 and I-240 beginning in 2007.

Well over four million shoppers a year visit the mall, and about 40 percent of the mall’s traffic comes in from the Pole Road exit off of I-240, said Christi Parks, senior marketing director for Crossroads Mall.

“We knew if they closed our number one entrance, the effects would have been significant for us,” Parks said.

Transportation officials had originally announced that the Pole Road exit would have to be closed to accommodate the new safer interchanges, and shoppers would instead have to exit at Eastern Avenue half a mile away and double back along the access road to get to the mall. Sen. Leftwich urged her constituents to write to ODOT and express their concerns about the plan.

ODOT Director Gary Ridley recently sent a letter to Leftwich informing her that the Pole Road exit will remain open with some minor modifications.

“In response to the concerns of area legislators and the public, we conducted additional traffic counts and highway operations analyses and determined that, with some minor changes, the ramp can function safely in accordance with current design standards,” Ridley said. “We have therefore recommended to the Federal Highway Administration that the Pole Road off-ramp be retained in the final design of the project.”

Parks thanked Sen. Leftwich for her efforts to keep the Pole Road exit open.

“Senator Leftwich has been a strong advocate from the beginning, and was instrumental in bringing the issue to the public early on,” said Parks. “We are extremely appreciative of her efforts and the efforts of the rest of the legislators that got involved in this.”

Leftwich also thanked her constituents for getting involved in the process.

“The response from South Oklahoma City and other metro areas was overwhelming,” said Leftwich. “Together, we were able to impact our local economy for the better by making sure citizens in the metro area and beyond have access the shopping, food and entertainment the hardworking businesses in and around Crossroads Mall have to offer.”