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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 20, 2019)
6A • COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL • FEBRUARY 20, 2019 Sears Road from A1 lanes and four-foot shoulders on both sides, budgeted at $1.57 million in the county’s capital im- provement program for the 2022 fi scal year. Even in the fi rst phase, howev- er, the county has come up against resistance. Sears Road resident Lin- da Raade-Vaught, who according to the report owns the only tree marked for removal on private property, has been a vocal petition- er against the project as well as a monkey wrench in the county’s de- signs on her abutting property. Raade-Vaught said an agree- ment between the previous land- owner, her father, and the county extends her property eight feet into the roadway, meaning she has been paying 70 years of taxes on land the county has allowed to be used by the public. “Th ey sent me a letter off ering me $2,000 for the tree and my land. … but I refused to do it,” Raade- Vaught said. “Unless they take it by eminent domain, they’re not going to take my property.” In response to her objections, the report states that “Vaught’s tree will not be removed while it remains on her private property without her permission,” though it recom- mends that the existing guardrail around the tree be replaced. Gallup, in his presentation to the board, warned against non-action. “If we do not use these funds per ODOT’s expectations, we may need to return the funds to ODOT,” he said. Th e project report further warned against not using the funds. “Th e project decision-makers need to know that if we do not ex- pend the All Roads Transportation Safety (ARTS) funding allocated by ODOT, it will be diffi cult to secure those funds in the future,” it said. “Agencies are held accountable for transportation funding and grants that are not programmed or com- pleted can result in penalties, rang- ing from future funding not being granted to that agency to funding being reallocated to other agencies.” Testimonies During the public hearing, sev- en residents and interested parties gave public testimony in objection to the proposed project. Jim Poetzl, a Sears Road resident, stated that about six trees previous- ly marked for cutting were on his property and provided a barrier to traffi c. “I have kids,” he said, “and in the initial proposal you guys were going to remove trees that were directly in front of my house, which is my safety corridor from the road. … I don’t need a car at 55 miles an hour that loses control … come crashing through my yard and hitting one of my kids.” Poetzl pointed to a rise in chil- dren in the area and a lack of signs warning drivers about children at play as more pressing issues to be addressed. A wider road, he added, would encourage drivers to speed. “Th e last time I checked, trees don’t walk in front of cars. Th ey’ve been there for hundreds of years and they have not been hit as of today,” he stated. “So if you remove those trees, all you’re going to do is allow people to be less attentive in their driving and increase their speeds.” Next, Marlene Nowak, who co-owns the land with her sister, Raade-Vaught, started her testi- mony by noting that the county had years ago mistakenly placed the road eight feet into her family’s property. Nowak presented a petition of 60 signatures from residents of Sears Road to reject the proposed proj- ect. Th ough four households were not home, she said, 100 percent of the residents she solicited signed the petition. “Th ey do not want the trees re- moved. Th ey do not want the road widened,” she said. “Th ey just want double-yellow lines. … and speed limit be posted.” Nowak’s sister, Raade-Vaught, approached the board next to off er her own safety recommendations on Sears Road. “Yes, there have been lots of in- cidents along the roadway, but not all of them have involved fi xed ob- jects,” she said. “In fact, there have been more airplane crashes result- ing in multiple fatalities on proper- ty next to the roadway than motor vehicle accidents.” Raade-Vaught cited other Sears Road residents’ main concern as being excessive speed, “both private and Lane County vehicles from the maintenance shop.” Making Sears Road another thoroughfare just over a mile from Interstate 5, she said, would just put residents at risk. Raade-Vaught recommended re-striping the road, placing fog lines, increasing double-yellow lines on straightaways and install- ing rumble strips as solutions. Next, Joe Raade, testifying as a Sears Road resident, emphasized Highway 99 as needing more atten- tion. “Highway 99 between Saginaw and Cottage Grove is by far our most dangerous part of South Lane County,” he said. Addressing the crash incidents on Sears Road from the project re- port, Raade spoke in his capacity as a fi rst responder at South Lane County Fire and Rescue. “I had the unfortunate experi- ence of responding to all six of those emergencies up there,” he said. On the fatality, Raade said, “He was dead before he left the road. I know that fi rst-hand.” Raade urged commissioners to look elsewhere for solutions. “Th e accidents on our road are not related to the objects. Th ey are related to the speed,” he said. “Th ey are related to some of your coun- ty vehicles that are parked three houses down from me. Th ose are instances that you can fi x and that are in your control to fi x without having to use this money.” Raade also pointed to Mosby Creek Road and London Road as needing safety attention. In a subsequent interview with Th e Sentinel, Raade explained his knowledge as a fi rst responder to the accidents cited by the project report. “All but one of those involved in- toxicants,” he said. According to Raade, regarding the fatality, an elderly passenger of the car had experienced a heart attack. His wife, who was driving, was distracted by the event and had a low-impact crash with a tree stump. No injuries resulted from the crash, but the passenger did not survive his medical emergency. Continuing testimonials, Gwen Jaspers, a member of the council’s Transportation Advisory Commit- tee stepped up to the microphone. “I am opposed to removing 61 trees along a two-mile stretch of Sears Road,” she said. Jaspers criticized the proposal for not addressing intoxication and the young ages of those responsible for the traffi c accidents. Home Pride Painting and Repair LLCC Over 30 years of experience “I argue that to accommodate irresponsible driver behavior does not promote a culture that priori- tizes safety,” she said. “A fi rst step to safety would be to reduce the speed limit.” Th ough the process of applying for a speed limit change had been referred to “futile” in previous meetings, Jaspers noted that an ODOT rule change is being con- sidered that would take into con- sideration the larger context of a roadway in question. Jaspers also made the case that wider roads will make speeding and crashes more frequent due to a false perception of safety by drivers. Robin Mayall from Springfi eld next brought testimonial to the board from a cyclist’s perspective. Criticizing Highway 99 as “a cy- clists nightmare,” Mayall argued that the removal of trees on Sears Road would have a severe econom- ic impact on businesses that benefi t from a regular stream of cyclists. “We should be looking at ways to make this road safer and quieter for residents and more attractive to area cyclists,” she said. Mayall recommended “some combination of law enforcement activity, speed-calming treatments and a re-designation of this road potentially as a scenic bikeway.” Sears Road resident Mark Kin- tigh fi nished testimonials by sup- porting previous testimonies. “Speed has always been an is- sue,” he said. “I’ve had a number of crashes go through my fences onto my property.” Kintigh feared that removing the objects would put the safety burden on the property owners rather than the reckless drivers. “I think it would be more fi scally responsible to turn the money back and have it used for a better use,” he said. Board Responses Commissioner Heather Buch, who represents the district encom- passing Sears Road, spoke fi rst in response to the testimonials. “I, too, like the last speaker, don’t like to spend money just to spend money,” Buch said. “I want to know that it’s spent wisely and it’s some- thing that the community wants.” Buch noted that the project seemed to come about as a request from ODOT rather than the resi- dents. In response to an inquiry about speed limits, Gallup responded that a speed study on Sears Road revealed that most drivers were traveling at a speed between 50 and 55 miles per hour. While will- ing to submit an application to ad- just speed, Gallup said the process would take six to eight months and, “It’s been my experience in the past that their recommendation is right at what most drivers are doing.” Gallup added that the problem with adjusting speed limits too low is “speed diff erential,” whereby drivers become frustrated, are more likely to pass other vehicles and crash incidents consequently rise. Buch expressed a desire to ex- plore alternatives before green lighting the project. “It’s sounds like a solution for a problem … that doesn’t exist,” said Commissioner Joe Berney. “What is driving it other than dollars?” he asked Gallup. Gallup cited crash data again, but Berney was unimpressed. “I’m having trouble understand- ing, if you have virtually 100 per- cent of the people living on the road saying ‘Please don’t do this,’ and there are other ways to approach the problem, why we wouldn’t be looking at those other ways,” que- ried Berney. “Th e fi xed objects create the se- verity of the crash,” explained Lane County Engineer Peggy Kepler. “When people leave the roadway and they hit a fi xed object, the se- verity of the crash is higher than if it wasn’t there.” Commissioner Jay Bozievich took the point. “Fixed object re- moval is about allowing people to make mistakes and recover from them,” he said. “I know this because I used to design roadways for a liv- ing.” Bozievich also warned about the possible legal liability of taking no action aft er a road has been identi- fi ed as a safety risk, referring to past cases where the county had been sued by injured parties. Board Chair Pete Sorenson add- ed sobering information to the dis- cussion to highlight the need for attention on the issue. “Lane County exceeded the traf- fi c deaths of Portland, Oregon,” he said. “Substantially all the traffi c deaths over a 10-year period came out of rural Lane County. We were the death leader in the state for many years and maybe still are.” As the board members circled in on a decision, Commissioner Pat Farr addressed the crowd of Sears Road residents in the audience di- rectly. “I think there’s a lot more that needs to be talked about before we cut the trees,” he said. “I’d much rather a fi xed object be a tree than your house.” Sorenson recommended a two- month delay on the vote to come up with a strategy and Kepler noted that the intergovernmental agree- ment with ODOT allows for up to 10 years to come up with a solution. Commissioners ended the hear- ing by voting unanimously to de- lay voting for two months, during which time Commissioner Buch would arrange a community meet- ing with residents and city staff . Commissioner Buch had not re- sponded to inquires as of the sub- mission of this article. Outside the board chambers, residents were generally pleased with the results, but far from com- placent. “I was glad they spoke about the speed on the road,” said Sears Road resident Bonnie Edwards. Even so, Edwards lamented that she oft en sees cars treating the road “like a racetrack. … It happens every day.” Nowak agreed. “I want to see the speed limit at least lowered to 45. I want no passing,” she said. Howev- er, she was on the fence regarding other solutions. “Th e rumble strips, that’s a questionable thing for me because, even though it’s a safety thing, it is really bad for the peo- ple who live there,” referring to the strips’ disruptive noise. Whatever solutions are ulti- mately decided upon, the next two months will see residents consid- ering a range of options concern- ing the safety issues of Sears Road. Striking a balance between county and resident interests rests on the fruitfulness of the coming discus- sions as well as a unifi ed local voice. Until then, residents can continue to enjoy the tree shade of their sce- nic rural road. F amily Seeking Small Homestead Are you planning on selling your home and land on the outskirts of Cottage Grove? We would like to become the new stewards of your homestead, and promise to love your place as you do. Please email details to burgundyjoy@protonmail.com EVERYONE DESERVES A GREAT SMILE! CALL TODAY TO SCHEDULE YOUR INITIAL CONSULTATION • 541.686.1732 EUGENE CRESWELL 622 E. 22nd Ave Suite C 195 Melton Rd. 541.686.1732 541.686.1732 or visit us at www.thornton-ortho.com Winter Heating Tune-Up Only $99* We’ll make sure your system is running eff ectively and effi ciently. 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