Back in the early ’80s, Decatur widened Church St. from two lanes to four.  Now, the city is heading in the other direction…at least for the moment.

Straight from the Glendale Park Master Plan page…

Because no parking will be available in Glenlake Park during construction, one lane of traffic in each direction on Church Street will be closed and on-street parking will be provided for residents who cannot walk to the Tennis Center and Glenlake Pool. The plan will use a variety of traffic control devices, raised pavement markers, signs and other measures to narrow Church Street to 2 lanes and is temporary during construction. On-street parking also should help calm traffic, make it safer for pedestrians accessing the park along Church Street and allow the park improvements to be completed as quickly as possible.

See a map of the plans here (pdf).

Though the note says the change is temporary, its most likely a trial phase for a key element of the Community Transportation Plan: decreasing the number of lanes on many of our major streets.  And yes, Church Street is among them.

Catherine reports that there are two new questions posted on the city’s “Open City Hall” webpage.

The first question sounds like its in anticipation of updating the city’s strategic plan for 2010:

Should the City continue it’s Smart Growth strategy in downtown Decatur?

The second sounds like its looking for affirmation on a big part of the city’s existing Community Transportation Plan:

Should major intersections be rebuilt to promote bicycle and pedestrian uses, even if motorists are inconvenienced?

For those new to this feedback system, answers are ultimately compiled and presented to the city commission for consideration.

Oh, by the way – yes and yes.

I’ve been struggling to make it through this week with a full work load and rehearsals for the ASO Christmas Concert, but InDecatur’s been picking up the slack with a full report from the city commission’s meeting on the Community Transportation Plan.

I hope the commission wasn’t as indifferent to the public’s comments as this report makes them sound.

Decatur Metro wonders what the motivation is behind an opposition website to the “long term” transportation option of light-rail on Clairemont Road found in the Community Transportation Plan (page 23). The site says its authored by “a group of concerned citizens who believe that railed transportation on our historic and pastoral streets is not in the best interests of our neighborhood.” But their concerns seem quite scattered…trolleys are unsafe, trolleys drive inflexible routes, trolleys are costly, trolleys may hurt mature trees. I never knew the terror trolleys caused! Also don’t miss the sensational YouTube videos of trolleys smashing into cars!

Here’s a hint to those who are afraid of being hit by a trolley…don’t step/drive in front of it. It’s the same rule as with the MARTA buses that scream down Clairemont, refusing to stop at crosswalks.

This excessive use of scare tactics always makes me suspicious. What’s the real impetus of this?

Hattip: In Decatur – who deftly points out that trolleys ran in Decatur through the late 1940’s.

Photos Courtesy of the AJC

When the AJC voter’s guide asked the two men running against each other for the only disputed city commission seat on Nov. 6th , both made sure to include elements of the city’s drafted Community Transportation Plan in their response to the question “If elected, what will be your priorities?”

In addition to both making promises of tax relief, current commissioner Jim Baskett specifically mentioned “Improve safety at railroad crossings” (pages 12-21 of the Streets section of the Transportation Plan) while challenger Alvin McNeely gave a synopsis of the plan “I want to make sure that the bike lanes, sidewalks, greenspace, traffic calming, and other quality-of-life measures get implemented. Quickly.”

Both also mentioned addressing the concerns of future development, with Baskett looking to “protect the property owners that are in R-60 zoning from being overwhelmed by adjacent commercial properties“, (originally a concern brought about by the E Howard/Hillyer St condo development), while McNeely wants to address the issue of infill (see DeKalb Infill Overlay Ordinance).

To see how the candidates answered other questions like “What experience will help you in this job?”, “What’s the best thing an elected official in the post you are seeking can do for your community?” and “If you were stranded on a desert island…” (I’m serious) click here.