A proposed and controversial realignment of Highland Way opposed by many area residents is no more. Related development plans for apartments and some commercial properties have also been scrapped, according to Bowling Green Mayor Todd Alcott.

The planned realignment would have connected Highland Way with Emmett Avenue.  

But according to a March 14 letter to Alcott from Joe Plunk, chief district engineer for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, “KYTC is coordinating … to modify plans to reflect the status quo – an offset intersection with no median – as originally proposed,” Plunk said in the letter.

“Per the request of Rep. (Kevin) Jackson, Sen. (Mike) Wilson and (Alcott), the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is no longer pursuing the Highland Avenue realignment as part of the Nashville Road widening project,” Plunk said in the letter.

The proposed realignment would have been done in conjunction with the upcoming widening. 

The City-County Planning Commission approved a rezoning of 13.5 acres near Highland Way and Nashville Road in 2021. The development was to convert acreage between Highland Way and Potter Children’s Home into as many as 76 apartments and possibly a convenience store with gas pumps.

“The development that was previously (going to be) there is no longer,” Alcott said. “That prompted us to listen to the community and they wanted to have their say in this because they didn’t have a say in the beginning.”

A meeting was held at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church on Jan. 23 where details of the widening project and its impact on Highland way were presented, drawing heavy criticism from residents of the area.

“We were trying to make a greater good decision,” Alcott said.

The widening of Nashville Road is being overseen by KYTC because it is a state road. The widening calls for two lanes each way with a turn lane in the middle.

The new plan eliminates a raised median in the fifth lane of Nashville Road and retains a left and right-turn intersection with Highland Way and Nashville Road. 

“Ultimately, we are here to serve,” Alcott said. “Some will not agree, however we worked through until we could find the best way forward.”

Ron Sowell, a retired executive vice president with Med Center Health, lives on McCubbin Drive, a street connected to Highland.

Sowell said the proposed realignment of the street drew heavy criticism from those living in the area because linking the two streets would have created a “mini bypass,” effectively connecting Russellville Road with Campbell Lane, he said.

“You were talking about a significant projected increase in traffic on a neighborhood street that was designed back in the late 50s, early 60s,” Sowell said. “The street just isn’t wide enough to handle that kind of traffic.”

But Andy Souza, director of Public Works with the City of Bowling Green, said his department believes the realignment should have happened because the 4-way intersection would be safer.

“It’s kind of sad on our part,” Souza said. “We think it should happen from a safety perspective.”