Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Highway Department holds meeting

More than 60 people gathered for a public meeting to discuss the widening of Highway 24 - also East Main Street.

The project calls for widening the street from downtown to the curve at Ash Street. Those opposing cited the loss of trees, placement of utilities and potential problems with a third lane. The meeting lasted two hours and conversations became heated at times.

Phil McConnell, assistant chief engineer for the highway department fielded questions from those interested in the project.

One point under discussion is the need for a third land. That lane will be a center turning lane. Prescott Mayor Howard Taylor said that turning lane is a necessary safety feature.

Taylor said one issue is what happens when officers attempt to stop a motorist. He said the current two-lane road means that a car has no room to pull over until the road widens, past Ash Street, or onto a side street. Taylor said the addition of a turning lane means that officers can stop a car in the turning lane.

Some audience members questioned the safety of that practice.

Some community members have questioned the safety of having school children cross three lanes of traffic. Taylor said he has talked with Prescott Police Chief Brian Russell and that officers will add patrols after the street is widened.

The placement of utilities is another issue thats been discussed over the past week. According to McConnell, the wooden stakes with orange flags belong to the highway department. Smaller flags belong to the city and are reportedly to be placement for the city utilities.

Don Donaldson, an engineer for the highway department, said the rule is that electric poles will be located at the outer five feet of the highway right-of-way. In this case, the sidewalk occupies the outer five feet of the right-of-way. Donaldson said that means the poles should be located past the sidewalks away from the streets.

That has raised some concern among residents who cite the proximity to their homes.

Donaldson said the highway department has requested an exception to the rule, meaning the poles could be placed between the sidewalk and the street. Donaldson said he doesnt know how long approval will take, or if it will happen.

Another point made during the meeting is that the scope of the project means the road will be widened and that the level of the road will be two-inches higher than the current road. Donaldson said that two lanes of traffic will be open at all times, with the exception of the time workers are overlaying the asphalt.

The fact that the road will be higher prompted questions about potential flooding onto property along the road.

Id like to show you another piece of property  where you assured me that water would run uphill, a local property owner said. The man said hed received wild promises about another highway department project in town and that the result is that his property floods with every significant rainfall.

I want to know what assurances I have as a property owner that waters not going to run down there and flood me out.

The meeting ended with some people saying they still had questions. The exact location of utilities and the purpose of the flags currently dotting residences along the street is one of those.

Highway department officials say theres no way to be certain when the project will begin. A similar project in Hope has garnered little interest among those qualified to bid on the project. McConnell said theres also no way to be certain how long it will take to relocate the six utilities located along the road.

Were looking at quite a few utilities in a congested area, McConnell said.