Construction of the first five sections of Interstate 69 in Indiana are either completed or under construction. The Indiana Department of Transportation INDOT is now turning its attention to section six, which will pass from Martinsville to Indianapolis along State Road 37.

INDOT hosted open forums about the proposed section in Greenwood on Monday and Wednesday nights to discuss the interstate’s route and the second phase of their environmental impact study.

Rep. John Price, R-Greenwood, is sponsoring a bill that would revise a law banning the I-69 extension from passing through Perry Township on the south side of Indianapolis.

“I think the bill puts everything back at an equal playing field for all parties involved,” Price says. “It’s not a good idea that as legislators, we tried to dictate where a road goes or doesn’t go. In fact, it doesn’t comply with the Indiana constitution.”

He says the decision should be left to professionals at INDOT who take various factors into consideration.

Sandra Flum, I-69 section five project manager with INDOT, says the department is currently working on the EIS for section six. The EIS looks at the potential environmental and social impact of the interstate.

“It’s natural to say, ‘I don’t really want this in my back yard,’” she says.

She says INDOT has received less negative feedback in sections five and six, where the interstate would pass along an existing road. Some residents have expressed concerns about eliminating business and residential property.

“When they are actually looking at urban interchanges, they’re trying to reduce the amount of space needed to actually build that,” Frank Nierzwicki, Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs professor and former senior transportation planner with INDOT, says.

Martinsville Mayor Phil Deckard says there have been options for the interstate to take different paths through the city.

“I would not object to using the 37 footprint as long as we are not separated by some of those ugly walls that we have seen and were suggested when the first study was made,” Deckard says. “The important thing is having access to both sides of the area to our residents.”