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Allen Residents Fight Back Against Widening Alma Drive

A construction project in Allen has many residents upset.

The city has plans to improve the intersection of Alma and McDermott Drives, as well as widen Alma Drive into six-lanes between Hedgcoxe Drive to Rainforest Lane.

While neighbors said that they agree with improving the intersection of Alma and McDermott, they don’t feel it’s necessary to widen Alma Drive.

According to the city, they plan to widen the road in order to relieve current and future traffic problems.

Michelle Massi, who lives in the Watters Crossing neighborhood off of Alma Drive, said there’s no issues with traffic down the road.

“This doesn’t back-up… there’s no issues with this backing up,” said Massi.

The city plans to add new lanes to the center of the roadway in order to avoid road work near backyards.

However, that means getting rid of greenspace.

“They're going to be moving all the trees, which is the beauty of our area," said Massi.

Zane Lewis, who helps lead the Neighbors United Against the Widening of Alma Drive group said that the project could also be a safety issue for kids crossing the street.

“We have taken real issue with that because of the safety concerns of the neighborhood,” Lewis said.

The city plans to have a meeting Wednesday at 6 p.m. at the Allen Senior Recreation Center to share project details and to answer any questions.

Lewis said they are expecting a big crowd of neighbors to show up for the meeting. He said they will all wear blue to voice their concerns together.

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