On February 6 voters within the city of Moscow will be asked to approve or
reject a proposed $1.6 million bond issue for funds to develop improvements
to Mountain View Road. A two-thirds majority is required for approval. The
total project will cost approximately $2.1 million, but the State of Idaho
Transportation Department will contribute $500,000 for bike lane and
sidewalk development.
The project comprises 5 foot sidewalks and 5 foot bike lanes on both sides
of the road, from 6th Street to F Street; turn bays where required for side
streets and existing driveways; median strips where turn bays are not
required; a traffic light at the D Street intersection; a bioswale from
approximately one block south of Hillcrest to 6th Street, which will serve
as a wetland for filtration of road runoff, and as a linear park segment;
and landscaping in the median strips and along the edges of the roadway.
The project has been presented to the public in a number of forums, both
formal and informal. Following are the most frequently asked questions from
those presentations, with responses following. Thank you for your indulgence.
Please vote.
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Why has the Council chosen to fund this project with a bond issue?
First, bond issues are routinely used to fund any capital project too big
(fire trucks, the animal shelter) to be handled by general fund revenues.
Second, an LID would not be fair to adjacent property owners. Mountain View
is an arterial; improvements to arterials do not increase adjacent property
values. Third, improvements to Mountain View will benefit the whole
community by providing safer access to area schools and school athletic
facilities, Mountain View Park, the County Fairgrounds, several churches,
and numerous recreational sites outside the limits of the city.
Then why isnít all of Mountain View being improved?
The answer is simply that the high cost of road improvements wonít allow it.
The citizen task force that spent nine months considering what, if anything,
to do with Mountain View came to that conclusion, and so decided to address
the project in stages. The section from F Street to 6th Streetóthe limits
of the proposed projectóis clearly the busiest, and is most deserving of
immediate attention.
How will the rest of Mountain View be improved?
A substantial portion of the east side of Mountain View from 6th Street to
Highway 8 borders unimproved ground. As those properties are developed, the
developers will be required to make improvements to adjacent portions of the
road (to the center line) in keeping with the design standard established by
the proposed project. On the west side, where development has taken place,
improvements will be made year by year until all necessary work has been
completed. Mountain View from F Street to the limits of the city will be
improved in a similar fashion, probably after completion of work at the
south end.
Does this mean that other street improvement projects elsewhere in
the city will be funded with bond issues?
No. The decision on a bond issue for Mountain View was driven by the award
of $500,000 for the project by the State. The project must be completed in
1997, or the award will be revoked by the State for distribution elsewhere.
The Council could not anticipate the award; the bond issue is the only way
to generate immediate revenue sufficient to capture those funds.
Why is a traffic light at D Street and Mountain View in the project?
The traffic light is essential to the safety of our school-aged children.
The Junior High, the High School athletic facilities (at the Junior High)
and McDonald Elementary generate large volumes of pedestrian and automobile
traffic, producing heavy and dangerous congestion at that intersection. In
their recent resolution supporting the Mountain View project, our school
board identified the traffic signal as an essential safety element. The
light can be set to default to green for north-south traffic, and thereby
facilitate Mountain View traffic when congestion is absent; but it can also
be actuated by pedestrians and cars crossing Mountain View from either side
of D Street when the need is present.
Why are landscaping and median strips in the design?
The original design generated by the citizen task force included neither,
because of the assumed expense. However, their recommended design did
include sidewalks and bike lanes for safety, and turn bays to facilitate
traffic flow. They also chose not to recommend acquisition of any
additional right-of-way, but with an eye to the future, to recommend
development of all existing right-of-way. The design was frugal, but also
wide open. The median strips and the landscaping were added to remove the
psychological inducement to speed that a very wide, very straight road
generates. Yes, there is an aesthetic benefit (and a health benefit,
tooócarbon monoxide absorption and oxygen generation), but the decision to
add those features was safety-based.
What do the median strips and the landscaping add to the cost?
The preliminary engineering estimate of cost for the median and all
landscaping is $160,000. This represents less than 8% of the total project
cost, or less than $1.50 a year for an average homeowner.
Wonít this be a big maintenance expense?
Minimal maintenance will be required. The trees and the ground cover in the
median strips are low maintenance in every respect. No mowing is required.
The median strips are irrigated. Some trimming will be required in time for
trees in the median strip, but the trees are of a variety that grows more up
than out. Trees and ground cover on the edges of the right-of-way will be
the maintenance obligation of adjacent landowners, as they are elsewhere in
the city.
Wonít the trees shade the road in winter, causing ice on the roadway?
All trees included in the design are deciduous. The leaves wonít be on the
trees in winter.
Wonít the median strips cause problems for snow removal?
Snow removal crews push snow to the right in the direction of travel--away
from the median. The planting strip between the road and the sidewalk will
allow snow to be piled away from the roadway, and away from the sidewalks.
A few farmers still use Mountain View to move farm machinery. Will
they now have to find an alternate route?
The combined width of the automobile lane (11í), the bike lane (5í), and the
ìshy distanceî between the automobile lane and the median curb (2í) is 18
feet. This will accommodate the wheel base of the largest farm machinery
now in use. Combine headers wider than 18 feet can be removed, and
routinely are for on-road travel. Further, the branches of the trees chosen
for the median will provide adequate height clearance for farm machinery,
buses, and other large vehicles by the time they mature enough to overhang
the roadway.
Why do we need two sidewalks and two bike paths?
Sidewalks and bike lanes that allow travel with the flow of automobile
traffic are a proven safety feature of arterial design. Sidewalks on both
sides of arterials are a City standard. State guidelines for bike lanes
stipulate bicycle travel in the direction of traffic flow. Sidewalks on
only one side of an arterial encourage crossing at other than designated
crossing areas. Bicyclists riding against the flow of traffic risk not
being seen by drivers executing turns.
The linear park at the projectís south end requires an additional 25
feet. Isnít that expensive?
Ground for the linear park will be acquired from developers complying with
the Cityís parkland dedication ordinance. The ordinance requires as a
condition of new development either dedication to the public of a small
portion of the subject property, or an equivalent contribution to a special
fund maintained for park creation. The Mountain View project will provide
an important link in Moscowís linear park system at a very small cost to the
public.
What if the bond fails?
The project will likely go away. The $500,000 in State funds must be
expended in 1997. Engineering for the project is a lengthy process, and
must be begun very soon in order to be completed by the 1997 construction
season. If the bond election is defeated on February 6, the window of
opportunity for State participation will close, and the $500,000ónearly a
quarter of the project costówill be moved to another project elsewhere in Idaho.
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Gib Myers gmyers@moscow.com
City of Moscow 208.883.7000 voice
PO Box 9203 208.883.7018 fax
Moscow, ID 83843
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