|
Residents plead for Valleyway improvements
2/3/2010 9:47:45 AM
By Hope Brumbach
Splash Editor
An impassioned group of residents on Tuesday pleaded their case to improve a stretch of roadway near the Liberty Lake Golf Course that lacks pedestrian and bike paths.
The street improvements are needed for public safety at the Valleyway Avenue and Lakeside Road corner and should not be delayed, the residents told the Liberty Lake City Council.
Portions of the improvements are part of the city's requirements for the Bella Lago residential project, which has been slow to develop after being approved in 2001. The requirement calls for the developer to install curbing and a 6-foot sidewalk or a 10-foot pathway on the west side of the street once the city makes improvements to Valleway from Molter Road to the east city limits, a project potentially scheduled for 2013.
City staff says it makes sense to make the improvements along with the city street project, so the pathway fits into the overall plans and won't be torn out for any roadway changes.
"If it's one life, it's not a waste," retorted resident Shannon Hale at Tuesday's City Council meeting. Advertisement
The improvement issue came before the Council last month when the Bella Lago developer, after first asking for the requirement to be removed, agreed to a modification that moves the pathway to the west side of the road and ties it to the city's planned street improvements. During the recent modification process, more than 60 residents in the area complained to the Council about the delay and change in the improvements. On Tuesday, a handful of neighborhood representatives told the Council they were frustrated with the lengthy delay that has stretched over the years.
As a result, the Council agreed on Tuesday to explore engineering costs for improving the roadway, along with the feasibility of phasing it in.
City staff said another option is to create a local improvement district with the five surrounding neighborhoods, the city and Spokane County, so the cost could be shared.
Another way to pay for the improvements is the city could cash in a letter of credit from the developer, if they refuse to make the improvements, city staff said, but the city would have to cover engineering costs.
|
