Driving 2030: Council to study city's road needs
02.15.2005
by Lisa Shearer, The Edmond Sun
Figuring out Edmond's road needs through the year 2030 is the task of two companies pairing up to put together the city's master transportation plan.
Edmond City Council members heard the preliminary plans Monday afternoon of how C.H. Guernsey & Co. and Wilbur Smith Associates will go about creating the roads plan. The council took no action on the item as it met in a workshop session.
The two companies will take work completed by the Mayor's Transportation Task Force and city staff, as well as seeking input from other agencies such as the Oklahoma Department of Transportation and the Association of Central Oklahoma Governments, to piece together a picture of what the city will need to prepare for future traffic needs.
In particular, east of Interstate 35 will be studied, the area expected to see the most growth in the next 20 years.
Karl Stickley of C.H. Guernsey Co. said one of the issues the consulting firm will look into is how solid the population projections for east Edmond are now.
"There's a feeling, given what's going on right now, that it's too low," Stickley said.
East Edmond is expected to see a population of 1,885 people in one 12-square-mile area by 2030, according to ACOG. But in 2004, the city had almost as many final plats for home additions in east Edmond as it did in west Edmond, signaling an increased interest in building there.
Other items to review in the plan will be east-west road access - in particular across the railroad tracks - as well as reviewing north-south routes to ensure better traffic flow, look at what types of things the city will need to plan for as it continues to grow and lay out possible amounts of funds needed for future projects as well as possible funding sources.
The program also will evaluate future transportation systems as well as look at public transit needs. Environmental concerns will be incorporated, too, Stickley said.
"Environmental is not just fish, wildlife and plants - it's noise" and other quality of life issues as well, he said.
No cost has been finalized on the master transportation plan as yet, said Bob Schiermeyer, city planner. Part of the workshop conversation was to determine some direction from the council before the company finishes its negotiations with the city staff on scope of work and cost.
This is actually the first phase of a larger project the council has authorized, which will feature a second phase updating from Edmond Plan III to Edmond Plan IV, which is the city's zoning guide.
For the transportation plan, at least two public meetings will occur - one will be an open house situation where the public can come and go to hear the proposal, fill out a survey and offer written comments about transportation needs in the city.
Before the plan is adopted by the council, another public meeting will be set for more public input. No dates for these meetings have been set yet.
"I think that's (an open house for public input) critical, because people think we're doing nothing to solve the transportation problems," said Ward 2 Councilor Paula Sanford.
Mayor Saundra Naifeh, who is up for re-election against Julie Fost, asked the consultants if it would be possible to shorten the proposed 12-month time span for the study to eight months in order to save money on consulting fees.
However, after discussion, the council left the time frame somewhat open-ended from eight months to 12 months so as not to short-change the need to flesh out ideas and get the appropriate data.
Another concern by Sanford was that shortening the timeline would put too much burden on the city staff who will be required to provide data to the consultants while also working on their day-to-day duties.
(Lisa Shearer may be reached via e-mail at lshearer@edmondsun.com.)
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