Friday, July 1, 2016

City Council Punted on West Majestic Oaks Lane

The City Council missed another opportunity this past Tuesday to do the "right thing" for the citizens of Georgetown, and for those adjacent to the city by doing nothing and leaving West Majestic Oak Lane open to through traffic.

It is clearly a safety issue for those who live in Woodland Park. Do they have to suffer a serious incident caused by a speeding vehicle taking the "shortcut" before the council will do the "right thing" and close the street at the Sun City boundary?

It is only common sense that safety trumps convenience, yet, the council refused once again to exercise common sense.

Councilwoman Eby said she was concerned that the city be consistent across the city when similar issues arise.  Well, the city appears they are consistently going to put convenience above safety. Now the city is going down the same path by preparing to approve two connector roads between a new 940 home development called The Madison and the existing Shady Oaks development. There are two major roads planned out of The Madison, one to Hwy 195 and one to Ronald Reagan. Clearly there is no need to connect to the narrow Shady Oaks streets.

The same old tired excuses of public safety and mobility are trotted out as justification. What about the safety of the people who live in Shady Oaks? If public safety is so important to The Madison, then maybe a fire house should be included in The Madison's development plans. The police will have quick and easy access from their headquarters down Shell Road and then up Hwy 195 to The Madison or a substation could be included in The Madison's plans. Certainly many other solutions to mobility and public safety exist that do not require disrupting old established neighborhoods.

It is also reported that the city's development code requires that a development connect to nearby existing rods. If this is true, it is time to revise the development code and allow common sense to prevail.

It is time that the city learn from past experience and consider the desires and needs of the current citizens and those in adjacent neighborhoods as it plans for future growth.  The roads in the older established rural neighborhoods were not designed for higher speeds and increased volume that are generated by the new urban neighborhoods.

It is not too late to reverse this "non-decision" and change the rules for development that does not permit new large urban developments to dump vehicles into rural neighborhoods.

Do the "right thing".

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