Wildwood residents press committee to keep Turnberry access closed as staff begins reopening review

At the September meeting of the City of Wildwood Admin and Public Works Committee, multiple Turnberry Place residents urged the city to maintain the existing closure of the Turnberry Place/Strutker (variously referenced in materials as Turnberry/Strucker/Stryker) access and questioned a staff assessment that recommended removing the delineators and reopening the connection.

The committee heard roughly half an hour of public comment from Turnberry residents describing safety risks if the access were reopened. Resident Ken Mazinas said he had spoken with city officials and emergency responders and relayed what he was told. “Rick Brown told me, ‘Hernberry Place is not a cut through,’ ” Mazinas said, and he repeated that fire and police personnel told him emergency vehicles could drive over the current delineators if needed. Gary Schrader, Bridget Fisher and Lauren Jordan echoed safety concerns about steep grades, tight curves and children playing on the street and said the neighborhood has been safe with the closure for many years.

City staff summarized the assessment and next steps. Public Works staff said the field inspection conducted July 8 produced a score of 75 out of 100; the city’s rule is that locations scoring above 70 are recommended for removal of a blockage. The department provided a preliminary cost estimate of roughly $33,500 to make the concrete repair and remove the obstruction, and staff said it plans to do a speed study to measure current vehicle speeds before removal and then repeat the study after any change to measure impacts. Director Rick Brown also told the committee that the city will send a formal post-evaluation notice to property owners within 150 feet of the barrier and to the homeowners association; that letter will include the evaluation score and a 30-day period for residents to submit additional factual information for staff review. Brown committed to sending that notice by the end of the week.

Committee members described the matter as an information item for the committee at this meeting and explained the two-part policy framework behind the discussion. Council members said the City Council previously adopted an ordinance forbidding gates or blockages on public streets and a separate resolution establishes the assessment and scoring process staff used. That ordinance and the scoring resolution are the legal framework the department followed; staff said the assessment process includes a post-evaluation notification and an opportunity to submit factual corrections or additional information before the department completes its final recommendation to the council.

Residents asked for clarification about which public-safety authorities participated in the earlier review. Committee members and staff said the city’s Board of Public Safety is an appointed advisory body that includes representatives from the city’s fire districts and the police department and that the next Board of Public Safety meeting is scheduled for October. Several residents said they had separately spoken with the fire marshal and other responders and reported that they were advised to avoid Turnberry for emergency training and that the road is not a safe cut-through for routine traffic.

Chair Farmer and other committee members emphasized the procedural steps remaining: staff will issue the post-evaluation notice to the HOA and adjacent property owners, accept documented factual responses for 30 days, complete a traffic/speed study, and—if the score and facts remain unchanged—return to council with timing and budget options to remove the barrier. No final removal or construction schedule was set at this meeting.

The committee did vote earlier in the meeting to reorder the agenda to discuss the Turnberry item first; that procedural motion (to reconfigure the agenda) was approved by voice vote.

What happens next: property owners and the Turnberry HOA will receive the formal evaluation notice within days, and they will have 30 days to provide additional factual information for staff review. Staff will complete the speed study and supply the council with updated information and cost estimates before any physical work occurs.