While staff with the Arizona Department of Transportation are seeking public comment on proposed changes to the interchange of State Route 179 and Interstate 17, don’t expect to see those changes any time soon.

Improvements to the interchange, which leads vehicles through the Village of Oak Creek and into Sedona, are part of a series of improvements planned for I-17 in the coming years. Those improvements include providing capacity improvements to the road, bridge improvements, drainage enhancements and more. The purpose is to improve conditions on the road for the next 20 to 30 years.

While no date has been set for breaking ground on the project, ADOT representatives are looking for public input on ideas to enhance the interchange. Construction is not budgeted in ADOTs current five-year plan, but could be included in the next five-year planning cycle.

Mackenzie Kirby, spokeswoman for ADOT in Flagstaff, said the project consists of 40 miles of Interstate 17, from the State Route 179 interchange up to Interstate 40 in Flagstaff.

The proposed alternative designs to the interchange, as well as a draft environmental assessment and other documents can be found online at www.azdot.gov/I17FlagstaffStudy as part of ADOT’s Design Concept Report.

“We are not at the design step yet. This project is very early on in our process,” Kirby said. “From ADOT’s perspective, I-17 is a crucial corridor for Arizona. It has historically been a top priority for ADOT. Over the past two years, $70 million in improvements have gone into I-17. That’s a total of seven projects. They’re either currently under construction or they’re approved to break ground later this year. One of the projects people are familiar with is in Munds Park. We’re doing reconstruction there.”

Sedona Mayor Rob Adams said representatives from the city of Sedona and the Village of Oak Creek are concerned about what the interchange will look like.

“It is the gateway to the greater Sedona area. We want to be sure that we’re part of that public process that determines what that design looks like. It needs to be, not only in alignment with the State Route 179 project and the outcome of that, but it needs to be reflective of our environment and an indication of as an entry way, that you are entering a special area,” Adams said.

Adams attended a Wednesday, Sept. 21, meeting in the VOC to represent the city of Sedona. The meeting was held at the OakCreek Country Club in conjunction with the Federal Highway Administration. ADOT representatives will also be invited to an upcoming meeting of the Sedona City Council.

The city’s presence, he said, is designed to ensure involvement in the design process for the interchange. Adams has personally written two letters to ADOT regarding the exit.

“The first one notifies ADOT that we’re aware of the process, and the second states we would like to call a meeting with the representatives of ADOT to form a group of people that would be from the greater Sedona area and be a part of the design process,” Adams said.

The exit, as it looks currently, is in need of an update, Adams said.

“It doesn’t indicate anything other than it’s just another exit,” he said. “We want it to make a statement, that you’re entering an incredible area. Then, as people drive up [State Route] 179, I think they’ll see that highway has been designed to really reflect the environment. We want the interchange to reflect the gateway to this environment.”