Council tables decision on Hillsborough Drive funding; orders traffic counts and legal check on prescriptive use

Pleasant View — The City Council on Sept. 23 tabled action on participating in funding for Hillsborough Drive improvements and directed staff to gather more information before committing city funds.

Staff said Hillsborough Drive is technically a private road owned by property owner Sean Myers but has been used and maintained by the city for years. Andrea (city staff) and other staff presented two engineers’ estimates and recommended the council decide whether and how much the city should contribute toward bringing the road up to city standards to serve an anticipated subdivision and proposed microtel hotel on the west side.

Developer Dave Laloli spoke to the council and said he and his group do not own the road; Sean Myers does. Laloli described plans for a small subdivision and for a microtel hotel that he said would bring guests and tax revenue to the city. He said the parties had discussed sharing the cost of improvements but asked for city participation to move the project forward.

Council members debated options, including a fixed city contribution, a percentage split, or refusing to pay. Suggestions ranged from offering a one‑time payment (examples cited by council members included $30,000 to $50,000) to declining assistance. Concerns included whether the road should remain private or be dedicated as a public right‑of‑way (the road is on the city’s Master Road Plan), future maintenance responsibilities, and whether improvements would relieve traffic pressure on other city streets.

Council member Arrington made a motion to table the funding decision and to direct the police department to perform traffic counts for one to two weeks, have staff consult the city attorney regarding any prescriptive‑use claims and right‑of‑way implications, and contact Sean Myers for additional information. The motion passed on an affirmative voice vote; council members said they will revisit the item after staff returns with traffic data and legal guidance.

No dollar figure was committed at the meeting; council discussion included an illustrative one‑third share (about $28,000 in one estimate) and a suggested $50,000 contribution from the city as a possible compromise, but council members did not approve any of those figures. The developer and property owner will continue the subdivision process and a future council decision will be required if the city elects to contribute funds or accept dedication of the road as a public street.