Residents May Fund Traffic Control

The Town Council voted 6-3 last week to allow town officials to investigate whether neighborhoods should be able to assist the town with the costs of traffic-calming devices such as speed bumps.

The issue has arisen following the suspension of most capital improvements in town due to a significant budget shortfall.

In July, the Chapel Hill Town Council approved $44,000 in its budget to create these devices in seven neighborhoods.

The Town Council approved last week such projects in the Chandler's Green, Ashley Forest, Silver Creek, Springcrest and Culbreth Ridge neighborhoods, amounting to about $31,000.

Bill Stockard, assistant to the town manager, said the town attorney and town manager will report back to the council at its meeting Sept. 23 or in October.

But some council members said cost-funding puts more affluent neighborhoods at an advantage.

Council member Mark Kleinschmidt, who was one of three members to vote against further investigation into the cost-funding issue, said he is not sure if these projects constitute a basic service, but if so, they should be funded by the town.

"I think that if the community has decided that traffic-calming devices are a basic service ... the community needs to pay for it," Kleinschmidt said.

He added that if the issue is a major concern to citizens, money should not be a factor. "If this is something we're really worried about ... it shouldn't matter how rich the neighborhood is," he said. "I think we all need to be pitching in, doing our part."

Council member Pat Evans said it wouldn't be prudent for the town to ignore the proposal. "It seems to me that it's logical to try and make the money go as far as possible," Evans said. "We are not a rich community when it comes to paying for infrastructure. The council is very aware of trying to show equity and fairness in all the communities."

Joseph DeVeaugh-Geiss of Sweeten Creek Road in the Chandler's Green subdivision said he originally petitioned the Town Council to allow the neighborhood to help foot the bill for these devices. But he said that as a principle, he does not believe neighborhoods should have to assist with traffic-calming projects.

He said the neighborhood experienced more and faster traffic once it connected to adjacent developments and that town engineering surveys confirmed these worries.

With many young families with small children in Chandler's Green, DeVeaugh-Geiss said something must be done to lessen the speeding problem.

But he said that the concern over more affluent neighborhoods getting an advantage is not even an issue and that he and his fellow neighbors just want to lower the speeds through the subdivision.

The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu.