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City to apply for two state traffic-safety grants after Engineer cites Mill Creek Parkway dangers; motion passes 4–3
Summary
Clinton City Engineer Jason Craft recommended projects including roundabouts and shoulder improvements on Mill Creek Parkway to reduce serious crashes; the committee authorized applications for two state traffic-safety grants by a 4–3 vote and Craft will draft resolutions for the August meeting.
City Engineer Jason Craft told the Clinton City Committee of the Whole that a data-driven safety-action plan identified Mill Creek Parkway as the highest-priority corridor for reducing serious crashes. Craft said completed traffic-safety projects have produced average crash reductions of about 50–60% at treated locations and described site-specific countermeasures — two-foot paved shoulders, a safety edge with a rumble strip, upgraded signage and lighting — that would be eligible for state grant support.
"Mill Creek Parkway is high traffic volume, no shoulders, no center turn lane. It's a two-lane highway with high speeds," Craft said, and noted the corridor carries roughly 8,000 vehicles per day with many drivers exceeding the posted 45 mph limit. He said the safety-action plan prioritized roundabouts or intersection reconstructions at several locations, including 19th Avenue northwest, 13th Avenue and a project near 16th Street Northwest, and that the city may be eligible for roughly $500,000 in state traffic-safety grants for such work.
Council members raised questions about where the required local matches would come from and whether the city can absorb detours and closures while other major projects (Bluff and Manufacturing) are underway. Craft suggested programming matches into the capital-improvement plan or bonding and said combining projects into one contract can reduce costs. He told the committee that, if awarded in a typical schedule, grants applied for in August would be announced the following February and the city would enter into agreements in early 2027 with construction phased after other major work.
After debate over costs and timing, the committee voted 4–3 to apply for both state traffic-safety grants under consideration. Craft said he will return with more detailed information and will prepare two resolutions (one for 19th Avenue and one for 13th Avenue) for the August business meeting.
The motion authorizes staff to pursue grant applications; funding and construction schedules will be set later if grants are awarded.
