JENKS, Okla. — Jessica Plisinski shares the frustration of many in Jenks, as the construction on Elm St. feels never-ending.
"It seems like every time they have a projected goal, it gets pushed back even further," Plisinski said.
That project is set to widen Elm St. to five lanes from 111th to 131st. The dry cleaner where she works sits right in the middle.
"With us being the only dry cleaners locally, it's been even harder for us to keep people coming in because nobody wants to deal with the construction," Plisinski said.
She tells 2 News Oklahoma that their entire strip center feels the impact.
"It's affected the donut shop, it's affected us, even getting a new business next door," Plisinski said. "Nobody wants to put a business next door because of the construction. They don't know how their business is going to handle it."
This project began in January 2025 and was expected to take 18 months to complete, which would be around this summer. After that, the city says they're supposed to start south of 121st and widen it to 131st.
That timeline has now changed. According to the city's website, phase one, which goes from 111th to 121st, is now projected to finish early 2027.
Plisinski and others on social media tell us they see one specific issue.
"In the morning time you get like a handful of workers," Plisinski said. "They look like they're working. Then by lunch time, you don't see anybody again. I generally am off by 1:00 every day, and by 1:00, you may see five workers down there."
While we were there, we did see work underway, and Plisinski hopes that slow but steady progress continues.
"The community is growing, the businesses should be growing, and it feels like we're all in a standstill until we can get this construction completed," Plisinski said.
We reached out to the city of Jenks, but didn't hear back.
TJ Eckert is your South Tulsa County reporter.
Is there something you think he should know about or look into?
You can email him at TJ.Eckert@kjrh.com.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --
- 2 News Oklahoma on your schedule | Download on your TV, watch for free. How to watch on your streaming device
- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices.
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Watch LIVE 24/7 on YouTube
