Preschool petition prompts review at Windsor and Grayling; committee to reassess after stormwater bump‑outs, temporary options considered

The Public Health and Safety Committee on Aug. 13 took up a petition from Marburg Presbyterian Church’s preschool asking the borough to install a four‑way stop at the intersection of Windsor and Grayling, citing limited sight lines and heavy pedestrian activity during preschool drop‑off.

Virginia Davis, director of the preschool, told the committee: “Every morning during the school year, about 55 to 60 children get dropped off around 9AM,” and said roughly a third of families arrive on foot or by bicycle. Davis said parents and staff regularly experience difficulty seeing oncoming traffic from Grayling and that drivers sometimes behave as if the intersection is an all‑way stop.

Chief John String, summarizing recent enforcement and counts, said a prior traffic study recorded roughly 49,000 vehicle movements over a four‑week period at the Windsor block and found six speeding violations in that sample, with an average speed of 16.8 mph; he said those results did not meet traffic‑engineering warrants for installing a four‑way stop. “For PENNDOT’s numbers, there’s no warrant … to indicate 4 stops on there,” String said.

Public works staff and the borough’s engineer said two stormwater bump outs (bioretention/curb extension features) are scheduled for construction beginning in September and lasting approximately 30–60 days. Tony (Pennoni) said the contractor pre‑construction meeting is scheduled for late August and construction could start mid‑ to late‑September. Staff cautioned that the bump outs may change driver behavior but that the effect is uncertain; they recommended waiting to reassess the intersection after the bump outs are installed and people have “acclimated” to any changes.

Committee members and residents raised the possibility of temporary measures to address immediate safety concerns during preschool drop‑off, including a crossing guard or targeted police enforcement. Staff said a crossing guard could be implemented quickly through coordination but that larger capital changes (for example, retrofitting bump outs) would require an engineering evaluation and budgeting next year.

Outcome: No regulatory change or traffic‑control device was ordered at the meeting. Committee members directed staff to inspect sight triangles (including vegetation), pursue vegetation mitigation where property maintenance is implicated, proceed with the planned stormwater bump out construction, and reassess the intersection after installation. Staff also offered to explore temporary options for the September school start if needed.

The committee did not adopt a specific capital appropriation and any engineering study or physical changes beyond the scheduled BMPs would require subsequent council action.