03/14/1977 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e the League had been persuaded that the intersection would have to be improved to accommodate the traffic flow through the area and elimin- ate air pollution. The League agreed that the safety problems were being addressed and that the Lane Transit District was being suffi- ciently involved, but their only concern with the street widening project was that it would exacerbate hazards for bikes and pedestrians. The League did not want the safety considerations to become subser- vient to serving the traffic flow, and urged intergovernmental coopera- tion to solve the safety problem while controlling the traffic solution. Mr. Ivan Niven, 3940 Hilyard Street, noted he had been living in the area for 34 years and had seen the great increase in traffic during that period of time. He said he was in favor of the 30th Avenue widening project because the intersection had become such a serious bottleneck. It was clear many people were evading the corner of 30th and Hilyard by using 27th, 28th, and 29th Avenues. He urged Council approval of the intersection widening project. Those speaking against the project were: Paul Harrison, 400 East 32nd Avenue, speaking as a representative of the Dunn Neighbors group. He noted the regret of the neighborhood groups that Ms. Smith, who represented the area, was not present for this Council meeting. He said that the group was not anti-traffic, that it recognized there was a problem of congestion in the intersection, but that the Associa- tion did oppose the proposal in its present form. The group had passed a resolution oppOSing the proposal for widening 30th and Hilyard as it felt there are other alternatives that would make the neighborhood more livable. The concerns of the neighborhood associa- tion were: access from the neighborhood to the major shopping areas across Hilyard would be difficult; an increase in noise and air pollution; the widening of the intersection seemed to be a way of gradually cutting up the city. He noted his own personal concerns for the proposed project and said he had timed the delay during rush hour and it was a two-to four minute delay, which he felt was not necessar- ily serious. He was also concerned with the proposed spending of a half-million dollars on the project, and paving over three acres of parking area, asking why there was such a major project for a rela- tively minor congestion problem. He questioned whether there were plans for a major arterial into the neighborhood by the 30th Avenue widening project and questioned the piece-meal approach to a major arterial network around the city. He noted that he did not want to stop the project but did want to participate fully in developing an overall transportation plan. e Randall Thwing, 3760 Onyx Street, spoke on behalf of the Southeast Firs Neighborhood Association. A letter was submitted for the record,' noting that the consensus of the group on March 7 was to oppose the project as proposed. He said the group felt that the widening of 30th and Hilyard was a way of assisting those travellers who were passing through the area, and did nothing for those living in the area. e March 14,1977--page 11 ;)..07