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Business owners and residents push back on G Avenue streetscape plan, ask council for more study
Summary
More than 350 petitioners and several downtown property owners urged the Douglas council to pause or modify the proposed G Avenue streetscape, citing emergency‑vehicle access, century‑old foundation fragility, embedded historic trolley tracks and potential litigation; council agreed to schedule further discussion and consider additional information.
Several downtown business owners and residents told the Mayor and Council on March 11 they do not feel the proposed G Avenue streetscape received adequate public discussion and they urged the city to pause major construction until structural and access questions are resolved.
Lizie Pedrego‑Boss, speaking for more than 350 petitioners, said her family owns two buildings on G Avenue and called for more dialogue before irreversible work begins. She raised concerns about emergency vehicle access on three affected blocks, historically embedded trolley tracks 18 inches below asphalt, potential vibration damage to century‑old buildings with shallow or inadequate foundations, and the risk of litigation if construction causes harm. She advocated a low‑cost pilot approach using paint and planters rather than immediate multimillion‑dollar construction.
Owner Lawana Diffie warned that many downtown buildings are over 100 years old and asked whether fire trucks could safely navigate a proposed two‑lane G Avenue configuration. She referenced a property owner’s email reporting foundation issues during renovation of 917 G Avenue and asked for clearer public explanation of the streetscape design, construction machinery, traffic impacts and mitigation plans.
Council Member Jose Montaño asked staff to pursue a public vote or further community engagement on the current design. Mayor Jose Grijalva said he received an engineer and contractor assessment suggesting sidewalk work near particular buildings could be problematic and asked staff to bring the matter back at a regular meeting with more information.
What’s next: council requested additional technical assessments and public engagement (a charrette or similar forum was suggested by speakers) prior to moving ahead with major construction on G Avenue.
