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| Kathleen Weeks | 1/12/2009 11:38:12 AM |
| The "Staff Report" posted on line for the UDC review and for the public's input has older, outdated drawings of the project. The posted drawings are from February 2008 (see date 2/2008). There have been major changes since then to the number of lanes of traffic making them much smaller. The sidewalks and landscaping on the north side of 9th have expanded. For example, the last "civil drawings" made available last week are dated 11/2008 and those show the northern sidewalk as adjacent to 9th Ave. roadway with the trees being planted between the private buildings on 9th Ave. and the sidewalk. The UDC Staff Report shows the trees being planted between the sidewalk and the roadbed. The Staff Report says the existing 4-lane road is cut down to a 3-lane. But many areas of the road are cut down to a 2 lane road. Look at E St to F St. There is no "suicide lane" nor any other loading zone where traffic could pull aside for emergency vehicles or police cars. There are so many narrowed parts of the roadway that you must question its functionality. It is largely a 2-lane road because the left-trun areas are so short. Are the intersections elevated? Is there handicapped access? Can the City really justify taking 20 to 40 feet of the entire length of the Delaney Park for an asphalt southern sidewalk on 9th Ave so that the City can reduce traffic lanes AND add 20 feet of trees and sidewalk on the nothern side of 9th? If anyone suggested cutting into the Park Strip to add a lane of traffic, there would be huge opposition yet here the City proposes to cut into the Park in order to eliminate traffic lanes and expand sidewalk and trees adjacent to private property on the north side of 9th Ave. Many of those private properties already have mature trees and annual flower landscaping. It is not helpful to request public comment and rush to a hearing based upon plans and drawings which are severely outdated and do not represent the current plans. This project would benefit from more careful public input but it is unlikely to receive same. The final drawings are only now being done and they have been a veiled mystery until now. Thank you. | |
| South Addition Community Council c/o Kathleen Weeks | 1/12/2009 10:17:20 AM |
| South Addition Community Council has been regularly providing input to Russ Oswald, USKH and the Mayoral staff regrading this project. Her is the formal comment submitted when this was last scheduled for the UDC: June 12, 2008 SACC’S COMMENTS REGARDING THE NINTH AVENUE PROJECT For many years South Addition Community Council has held meetings focused on the use and management of the Delaney Park Strip and the Ninth Avenue Repaving Project which has been in development since 2000 or earlier. South Addition Community Council has the following concerns with regard to the project design plans recently released by the engineer: 1. Our most serious concern is that the project design calls for the removal of the beautiful mature landscaping along the south side of 9th Avenue between C Street and E street. Presently there are very expensive elevated berms and two sidewalks (one sidewalk is adjacent to 9th Avenue and the other sidewalk is behind the bermed area. The berms support a row of 25 to 28 mature, flowering trees (crabapples and other varieties). The proposed design would remove all of the berms; all of the existing trees; and all of the sidewalks along the south side of 9th street. That extremely attractive and mature landscaping would be replaced with a flat grass area interspersed with new trees and a sidewalk adjourning the tennis courts, horseshoe and hockey rink. While presently the public has two choices of a sidewalk on 9th Avenue, now there will only be one. But SACC’s key concern is the loss of the mature landscaping. It takes so long to develop a mature tree in Anchorage that starting over just seems to be an enormous waste of the resources that were put into that area many years before. All of our members really appreciate the existing landscaping in that area and would hope that funds can be better spent buying bigger trees throughout the rest of 9th Avenue rather than tearing out healthy trees. 2. Our members strongly oppose the loss of park space. The most serious losses occur in the area of L to P street where another 20 feet of park space is taken away from the park. The right of way for 9th Avenue is extended into the park strip in order to widen the existing sidewalks along the residential area on the North side of 9th. This is grossly inappropriate particularly when even the original Patent from the federal government requires us to use the Denali Park for recreational purposes. These recreational purposes should not include accomplishing a widened right of way for a roadbed. 3. The proposed new types of trees for 9th avenue are largely Amur Chokecherry which are short-lived trees. While they are sturdy trees and can survive a lot of street traffic, a longer lived tree and a larger tree might be more appropriate. We would urge the municipality to consider more birch trees or longer lived trees. 4. There is a large use of funds for a gateway sign which reads “Fairview” and is positioned east of Ingra on 9th Avenue in a medial strip. While our members are delighted with art displays or planters that add to the attractiveness of a roadway, they do not feel that “branding” adds to the artwork. The artwork should be aesthetic only and not directional or sign-oriented. We would hate to see federal transportation funds and city bond money spent creating signs identifying every small suburb of the city. Artwork is something the entire community can appreciate. 5. We really appreciate the fact that all of the streetlight wiring will be moved underground but for years the vendors on the Park Strip have been promised some electrical utility access on the north side of the park strip. Are there any outlets or other electrical junction boxes planned for the north side of 9th Avenue? In the past when we have park events vendors who set up on the north side have been forced to use noisy generators because there is no electrical power available on the north side of the Park Strip. Also on the street lighting issue it would appear that the very high unattractive utilitarian street lighting is proposed. Anchorage has installed very attractive neighborhood sized street lighting in Fairview and on the downtown streets and we should choose shorter, more attractive, and neighborhood oriented street lighting along the Park Strip. 6. Some members have concerns about the fencing which is along the south side of 9th avenue at the intersections of Denali, Eagle and Fairbanks streets. Viewing those properties it appears that the municipality is making an attempt to replace broken unattractive chain link fencing with these more attractive corners. However the cut outs of the mountains seem “kitschy” and less artwork than souvenir-ish to many members. Passed this 19th day of June, 2008 | |