Two years ago, Justin and Kalyane Petri heard about a plan to widen Interstate 35E that would bring the busy traffic corridor closer to their Lewisville home.

They didn’t know how close until last month when they learned that the expanded roadway would run right by the edge of their property.

Dallas Morning News/Mark Rogers

Justin Petri and his wife, Kalyane, hold their 5-month-old son Jaxen in the backyard of their Lewisville home on Spenrock Court on Friday morning.

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“Imagine having a 10-lane highway in your backyard,” Kalyane Petri said, holding her 5-month old baby in the couple’s spacious two-story brick home. “We’re already close enough as it is.”

The Petris are among six Lewisville homeowners who met with state transportation officials in June and agreed to sell their homes along the east side of Spenrock Court to make way for first phase of the massive $4.5 billion, 28-mile construction project.

While the project has been on the books for years, the acquisition agreement is the first concrete evidence that the state is inching closer on the plan to widen the highway from LBJ Freeway in Dallas to U.S. Highway 380 in Denton.

While state transportation officials confirm they’re beginning to acquire property, they’re not giving any timetable for construction, other than saying the 12-mile stretch of the highway through Lewisville will likely be the first area for expansion.

“We’re working on how we can get this project on the ground,” said Cynthia Northrop White, a Texas Department of Transportation spokeswoman, explaining that funding for the project is still up in the air.

Anyone navigating rush-hour traffic along I-35E knows that traffic can grind to a halt, especially at the bottleneck where the Bush Turnpike empties into the interstate’s northbound lanes heading into Lewisville.

“Right now there is severe congestion,” White said. “If there’s an accident, now there are not a lot of alternative routes [for motorists].”

And gridlock is expected to only get worse.

Lewisville is the 11th fastest growing city in the nation, according to recent U.S. Census estimates.

The population in Denton County is expected to top 1 million by 2030.

“[I-35E] is one of the major roadways into and out of the metropolitan area,” White said. “With the growth projections, demand is expected to be very high.”

The widening plan is expected to be constructed in three phases:

n the southern portion, from LBJ Freeway in Farmers Branch to the Bush Turnpike in Carrollton

n the middle section, from the Bush Turnpike to FM2181 in Corinth

n the northern leg, from FM2181 to U.S. 380 in Denton

Construction will start on the middle portion because “that’s where we have the most funding,” White said. “The middle area is a priority. It’s probably the first to go.”

Expansion of the stretch from Carrollton to Corinth will cost $2.3 billion.

Most of the money — more than $500 million — will come from State Highway 121 toll revenue. Denton County will kick in $59 million from the 2004 bond election.

Cities along the corridor will also contribute to the project that is expected to increase the right of way from 380 feet to about 425 feet, White said.

She said $400 million has been allocated to acquire more than 100 pieces of property that rubs shoulders with this vital transportation route.

One of those properties is McCoy’s Toys, a boat dealership on the west side of the highway near Lewisville Lake.

“It’s no secret that if and when this project moves forward we’re going to be gone,” said manager Jesse Keene, who worries about finding affordable land close to the lake for the business.

Alex Lakhani, manager of the nearby Sunny’s Food Mart, knows that the convenience store and gas station will also be history when the project gets under way.

He just wishes he knew when that will happen.

“We know they’re selling the land and the store will close,” Lakhani said. “We would like to make plans.”

That sentiment is echoed by the Petris, who said life has been in limbo for the past couple of years.

At last month’s meeting at Lewisville City Hall, the couple and their neighbors agreed to sell rather than have the highway run so close to their homes. TxDOT offered to help with moving costs, but the Petris still don’t know how much they’ll be paid for their four-bedroom house, which is valued at $234,506 by the Denton Central Appraisal District.

Justin Petri wishes TxDOT would buy him out now so he could take advantage of the current buyer’s market, find a new home, and the family could move on with their lives.

“We wish they would just go ahead and do it,” he said.