08/06/2002 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Minutes of 8/6/2002 the Service Director stated that the Metroparks said they would run the all-purpose trail ,~ all the way to the gun club. In that area, the Metroparks land is rutted and is wetlands. The sidewalk would take a lot of kids off the street. He is concerned about the safety of children who are riding bicycles down the street and people who have to walk in the street because the area is very wet during the fall and winter months. He would like a commitment in writing whether or not the Metroparks will still complete their portion of this project if the city does not complete its portion. We should ask the Metroparks to do their part because it is a safety issue. Busing is being cut back and, when the weather gets bad, the children will be walking in the street. This may save a life. He has spoken to people in the area and shown them the Council minutes. This is making him look bad. His word is gold, and he is trying to get something done. Gerri Gerding, 25139 Chase Drive, is president of the Deerfield Park Homeowners' Association. She has had about 50 phone calls about a safety problem in her neighborhood. When you try to come into Deerfield Park from Columbia Road, there are cars parked on the west side of Dawn Drive. Cars are coming in, and cars are trying to come out. The street is not wide enough for three cars; consequently, they have to back up. Cars are backing up as far as Chase Drive and to almost the intersection of Columbia and Fawn. The matter becomes worse when a bus tries to get in. The cars are parked on the street most of the time even though the residents have driveways. She is bringing this up now because she does not want to see accidents occur. When cars come down Rose Road at 35 mph and have the green light, they come across Columbia Road to Fawn which is a 25 mph zone. They are not ready to have back-up lights in their face when the cars are backing up trying to let a bus out. Nobody is prepared for this. The residents would like to have no parking signs placed from Fawn and Dawn to the Dawn Circle. Councilwoman Kasler requested that this issue be placed in the Public Safety Committee. Councilman Dailey said this situation had been brought to his attention in the past by Mrs. Gerding, and he has had two or three calls from residents in support of the no parking signs. Also, he's had about two calls against the no parking signs mainly by the people who are going to lose the right to park in front of their home. He requested information from the Police Department on how many accidents had occurred in that area. From 1996 to the present, there have been no accidents at that location. There have been four accidents on Dawn and four accidents on Fawn, of which two were at the intersection of Fawn and Columbia. He and the Safety Director have looked at the area, and it's a tough call. Mrs. Kasler asked Councilman Dailey to bring the information to the committee meeting. President O'Grady said there are very specific guidelinesr-the width of the road determines if you can park one car, two cars or no cars. That's what we need to know, and that's what our Traffic Engineer can tell us. Mrs. Gerding said she has lived in the development from the very beginning, and they never had this problem before-it's only been about the past two years. Councilman Nashar noted that there are areas on Burns, Porter and Southern where there is no parking during school hours. That might help alleviate some of the problems in the Dawn/Fawn area. Doug Sebring, 6250 Wild Oak, Assistant School Superintendent, said that Mr. Nashar had earlier mentioned the letter the school district had recemly sent to parents regarding eliminating transportation in some segments of the city. They had done that following a 12