[Vision2020] Third Street Extension

[Tom Ivie]

April,
I do value your opinion on this and thank you upfront
for being honest.  I commend you on finding an already
existing alternative route for your day to day
travels. I do, however, disagree with a few things in
your argument.  I am not against a traffic light at
White.  On the contrary, I think there should be
several along Mt. View.  I guess one thing I was
trying to say earlier (but perhaps not very well) is
that it seems there should be an order to things and
the priority of fixing already existing problem areas
needs to be addressed before the city creates new
ones.  Like it or not, Third Street is designated as a
collector and 6th and D Streets are designated as
arterials.  It is bad engineering practice to try to
designate an arterial two streets away from one
arterial (E/W) 6th street and four-five streets away
from another (D Street).  Streets should be for
people, not just car funnels to outer destinations. 
Anyone who bought property on Third Street bought it
knowing that is was designated as a collector, not an
arterial.  You are right that it is the only east-west
street that travels from edge to edge.  Do we chalk
that up to great foresight and planning?  The honest
truth of the matter is that it does not take long to
get anywhere in Moscow, 5 to 10 minutes tops.  That
does not constitute a traffic problem.  Some may argue
that we need more east/west connectivity. Welcome to
D, 6th and State 8. And welcome to proper planning for
arterials in new subdivisions (actually, White Avenue
in the Salisbury Subdivision is a good example of
this).  You may also hear about winter and how 3rd
street is the only reasonable way east when it snows.
Try again... 3rd street functions just fine as a
neighborhood collector and serves this function to
Hayes Street, right at Hayes, left at 6th and Mountain
View here we come DURING THE WINTER, on bad days, when
6th street is impassable, etc.  People can easily use
State 8 to get to Mountain View if east of Mountain
View is the destination... a straight-line path is not
required.
--- April Fingerlos <aprilf at fingerlos.net> wrote:

> <coming out of lurking>
> 
> Tom, there are SEVERAL places on Mt. View that could
> be candidates for lights. White and Mt. View is
> becoming just as dangerous as D and Mt View due to
> the massive visual obstructions (huge power pole and
> dumpster on the northwest corner, overgrown
> vegetation on the southwest corner). One has to
> creep so far over the crosswalk and into the
> intersection just to safely view Mt. View traffic
> when turning off White that it's just insane. When
> I'm dragging my long trailer through that
> intersection, on the way home, to the barn, or to
> the Fairgrounds, the safety of that intersection is
> drastically called into question. Lights would
> provide a better control over the city-permitted
> visual barriers. The odd angles of Mt. View and
> Highway 8 have the same problem, but I see a light
> going in there when the Thompson property is
> developed (eventually).
> 
> I live on Damen. My back yard will butt up against
> Windfall Hills, where the new 3rd street will begin
> construction, rumor has it, next month, carrying
> Third to the proposed Moser Park. My husband and I
> attended several P&Z and City Council meetings to
> hear the plat reviewed, rejected, resubmitted,
> screamed at, debated, etc. 
> 
> I don't understand how Third can logically be
> considered a residential collector. It's not. It's
> the ONLY east-west road that travels from town edge
> to town edge (well, almost in the east). The
> Windfall Hills developer is insisting on roundabouts
> to "tame traffic," which is silly--the road should
> be treated as an arterial, not as a collector.
> Thankfully one was nixed, but the west-side one was,
> last I heard, still in the plat. Taming traffic on
> an arterial doesn't make any sense at all.  Also,
> FWIW, I don't use Sixth street to get to Third on my
> way to Pullman every morning or home at night. The
> traffic on Sixth, the absolutely horrible road
> surface and narrowness to Washington, and extra stop
> sign on Blaine route me over to B street instead. 
> 
> Anyone who bought property on a city arterial should
> expect traffic--they're kidding themselves if they
> believe it'll remain a nice little residential
> street for long.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> April
> 
> April Fingerlos
> Moscow, ID
> 
> 
>
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