Residents urge Bettendorf to restore larger Heatherstone speed humps after near miss

At the Oct. 21 Bettendorf City Council meeting, residents asked the council to restore larger speed humps on Heatherstone Road after a weekend incident in which a 9-year-old was nearly struck.

"What if tomorrow's headline read, City of Bettendorf reduces speed bumps on Heatherstone Road, 9 year old child struck by car. That could have been the headline this week after my son was nearly hit by a car on Sunday afternoon after the speed bumps had been reduced," Jackie Miller told the council, describing the near miss and urging immediate changes.

The appeal drew several neighbors and longtime residents who said the reduced humps have become ineffective, that parts of Heatherstone lack sidewalks and that the street has become a cut-through between 50 Third Street and Crow Creek Road. "There are at least 20 elementary school children on Heather Stone Road," Worthington Treasurer said, offering measurements and a proposed cross-section for a replacement hump he had provided to staff.

Council members and staff discussed next steps. A staff member identified as Brian said the city follows a specification range for humps—"typically between, 3 and 5 inches high"—and that the recent installation had been adjusted after complaints that the original humps were too high. City Administrator Decker Plain said the council has authority to order sidewalks at city expense but noted that past attempts to install sidewalks stalled because homeowners did not want to pay for them. He told the council the city has prepared a draft policy on speed-hump installation that will be discussed during goal setting.

Residents provided details to the council: one temporary removable speed bump previously used was 24 inches wide and about 1.5 inches tall; neighbors said that when the humps were installed to a different profile they slowed traffic for a time. Treasurer said the most recent blacktop humps were "not built to specifications," and that his measurements and a small model cross-section are in a handout to the council.

Staff said they would re-survey the installed humps, review Worthington Treasurer's specification, coordinate with the police on speed monitoring, and present options for the council to consider. Plain said the height and width would be examined against the city's draft policy and other city installations.

The council did not take immediate action at the meeting; staff said they will return with more information for council discussion during upcoming goal-setting sessions.