Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - City Council - 08/14/1990CITY OF SOUTH BURLINGTON 575 Dorset Street South Burlington, VT 05403 Tel. (802) 658-7953 Charles E. Hafter, City Manager SHELBURNE ROAD TRAFFIC CONTROL MEETING South Burlington Councilmen/Shelburne Selectmen Tuesday, August 14, 1990 South Burlington City Hall 7:30 PM Council Chairman Paul Farrar called the meeting to order at 7:40 PM. The following people were in attendance: Tom Crowley, Senate; Hilton Wick, Senate; Doug Racine, Senate; Vi Luginbuhl, House of Representatives; Sid Poger, The Other Paper; Joyce A. Ohlson, Town of Shelburne; Lynne Alden, VAOT; Don Lathrop, VAOT; David A. Ross, VAOT; Stephen Crowley, S.B. Resident; Ray Unsworth, S.B. Resident; Marcel Lapreer, S.B. Resident; Hilda White, Shelburne; Bill White, Shelburne; Susan Pritchard, S.B. Resident; Craig Leiner, CCRPC; Stanley Wilbur, Shelburne; George E. Little, Jr., Senate; Bill Shearer, S.B./Shelburne Resident; R.G. Shearer, Burlington; Carletta Nevers, S.B. Resident; Gary Nevers, S.B. Resident; Paul R. Philbrook, AOT; Albert "Sonny" Audette, City of South Burlington Highway Department; Chief Brian R. Searles, City of South Burlington Police Department; Laura Decher, Burlington Free Press; Ann Dutton, Shelburne Selectwoman; Barbara Mann, Shelburne Selectwoman; Tom Bessette, Shelburne Selectman; Ken Albert, Shelburne Selectman; Chairman Paul Farrar, S.B. Councilman; Michael Flaherty, S.B. Councilman; Bill Cimonetti, S.B. Councilman; John Dinklage, S.B. Councilman; Jim Condos, S.B. Councilman; Larry Wood, Shelburne City Manager; Chuck Hafter, S.B. City Manager; other interested citizens. Chairman Farrar asked the South Burlington Councilmen to introduce themselves and also asked the same of the Shelburne Selectmen. Chairman Farrar welcomed all those in attendance and introduced South Burlington City Manager Chuck Hafter and Shelburne City Manager Larry Wood. He then turned the meeting over to Selectman Tom Bessette. Selectman Bessette introduced Mr. Don Lathrop, VAOT Designer, and asked him to give a status update on the Shelburne Road Project. The construction cost is estimated at $14, 714, 742. To repair the bridge on Route 7 would cost $1.25 million and to replace the present bridge the cost would be $1.5 million. The value of the bridge as a separate project has been discussed. Mr. Lathrop passed around a PERT chart of projected procedures so that those present could see the process that has to take place before this project is a reality. The bid letting is scheduled for 1993-1994 if all goes along as planned. The "taking" hearing is scheduled for November of 1992. Craig Leiner, CCRPC, was asked to update his position on the Route 7 Corridor. He indicated that this project has a very high priority but because of all that has to be completed it is still a project that is at least 4 years away. He has been working at designing some alternative plans which would help alleviate a few of the traffic problems on Shelburne Road in the near future. A few of his suggestions were: commuter traveling and parking, the use of the shoulders for a third lane in designated areas, encourage the use of public transportation, ask management of Shelburne Road businesses to encourage the use of flex time, and do minor construction at certain intersections which have become major bottlenecks. It was stressed to Craig that the need for immediate relief is what we should be looking for. Any improvement that will take 2 or 3 years to implement will be useless because; hopefully, in the next 4 years the project will be completed. Craig stated that Webster Martin and Joe Oppenlander have been hired by the MPO to present a design of Route 7 to alleviate some of our traffic congestion. After the design and the suggestions for traffic light changes are presented, we have rely on the State to implement the changes. Chairman Farrar expressed the thought when being realistic there is might be a concern that legislation will not be able to fund the project 100% and; therefore, should we be willing to settle for a certain percentage of the project to allow for it to be started? Paul Philbrook, Secretary of the Department of Transportation, in answer to Mr. Farrar question stated that the money is not the issue. Money is appropriated one year at a time so the important issue is to work through all of the process and continue to present the project at 100%. Mr. Philbrook assured all present that the project is a priority project and is due to be processed in 1994 if everything is properly prepared. It was suggested that the MPO and Regional Planning Committee continue to assist the VAOT. Chuck Hafter and Larry Woods were asked to continue to remind the Senators and Legislators of the progress and importance of the project. John Dinklage encouraged the MPO and the Regional Planning Board to keep the project on track. John Dinklage made a motion that a formal letter and update be prepared every three months and be sent to all Legislators, Senators, and the Department of Transportation. Jim Condos seconded this motion. The MPO and Craig Leiner will act as project coordinators until other arrangements are made. Selectman Tom Bessette asked if there would be any benefit to asking the Shelburne and South Burlington Police to manually handle the traffic lights. The South Burlington Police and Shelburne Police had prepared a cost analysis and it appeared to be an expensive solution. Tom also suggested the possibility of having a three lane highway on Route 7. Two lanes could be used going north during morning business hours; and two lanes going south during evening business hours. David Ross and Lynn Alden from VAOT stated that the lights on Route 7 are presently sychronized. Lynn and David stated that they are willing to try other solutions but they do not have the time to see the traffic in action. They also pointed out that state owned traffic lights which are manually changed creates a serious liability for the State. Council Chairman Paul Farrar expressed his appreciation to State Representatives, Shelburne Selectmen, South Burlington Councilmen, and all interested citizens for attending the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 PM. Clerk Published by ClerkBase ©2019 by Clerkbase. No Claim to Original Government Works.