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Residents raise questions on southern bypass and local development; council and staff provide updates on events and planning
Summary
Public comment at the Jan. 15 Middleton council meeting focused on questions about the southern bypass (PEL study), neighborhood drainage and guardrail placement, and announcements about community events and city services.
Several members of the public used the Jan. 15 Middleton City Council meeting to ask about regional planning and local construction issues, and to share community announcements.
Janet Gibson, a resident of 945 Harmace Way, asked the council for clarity about the planned southern bypass. Gibson asked, “Do we know what's really what the southern bypass is gonna look like?” and said she had heard differing descriptions of the project.
In response, city officials said the preliminary engineering and environmental (PEL) study’s recommendation for the segment discussed in the meeting is to design the roadway as a 45 mph parkway with sidewalks and bike lanes. Council staff noted the PEL study envisions parkway-style design elements and that future design work will consider access to the river and input from affected residents. The council also said that where sound walls are proposed, they would be considered only if affected residents vote in favor of them; the meeting record states such a sound-wall decision would require at least 50% approval among the affected property owners.
Other public commenters raised localized construction concerns. Cindy Powell described a guardrail installed close to an irrigation ditch in the Kennedy Mills subdivision and asked whether the ditch company, the developer or the city has responsibility for access to the ditch for maintenance. City staff said the city engineer was reviewing the development and would perform a formal final walkthrough and inspection; staff told the meeting that deficiencies identified during inspection would need to be corrected by the developer.
Community announcements included an upcoming community service event: Cheyenne Sarah (address given in comment) said the annual “Love Your Neighbor” event will be held Feb. 8 at the middle school Ox Gym. Staff also announced the city’s new website launch target of Feb. 19 and a mayor’s open house scheduled for Feb. 13.
Comments and questions from residents were met with staff commitments to follow up: staff offered to provide inspection photographs and to return with documentation, and they said the city’s engineer would undertake a detailed inspection of the construction issues raised.
