Tailgating Area Disappears as Manchester Widens

As anyone driving through Maplewood can see, Manchester Road is undergoing some changes. 

The road is being widened between Big Bend Boulevard and Bredell Avenue to increase safety and improve stormwater runoff, said Anthony Traxler, director of the . The city will spend about $180,000 on the project while the federal government pays another $420,000. 

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But the changes will end a well-known tradition: tailgating during home football games. 

Aaron Ford, a regular tailgater and MRH graduate, said he hopes to find an alternative. He said the team appreciates the support from that side of the field.

“My son (Austyn Ford) graduated this year, but I’m still going to go out and support the team. I graduated from there, and my heart is still with the school,” he said. “We’re going to be greatly missed. Lot of good times up there.”

Another tailgater, Reginald Finney, said MRH should have stood up for the traditional supporters of the program. 

"They took out stands to add a wild flowers area for beautification purposes. Now that does not leave enough seating to host quarterfinal games and higher,” Finney said.

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Each lane on Manchester will be widened by a foot, and vertical curbs will replace swales in the stretch to mark the edge of the road. The vertical curbs will help drivers know where the edge of the road is, as well as help channel excess water runoff.

A bus kick-out will be added west of Big Bend on the north side of Manchester. This will allow busses to get out of traffic when they stop, putting an end to cars swerving to get around a bus when its hazard lights go on, signaling that it’s about to stop.

The curb will continue west to Bredell, with a sidewalk and a green space replacing what was once parking along the hill overlooking the MRH football field.

Traxler called the current parking situation hazardous.

“The federal government, they would obviously not approve that project because that head-in parking is a hazardous situation,” he said. A vehicle must back up onto a busy road when exiting the parking lot. 

Going west, the entrance to will be widened to accommodate two vehicles at the intersection.

A new curb and sidewalk will be built on the south side between Big Bend and Bredell too.

“It’s one of those projects that just takes so darn long to get going,” Traxler said. “It’s more of an enhancement for safety, that’s the emphasis for this project.”

The work is scheduled to be completed by the end of October.