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Tetonia staff push for narrower 60-foot major-collector right-of-way in public-works update
Summary
Sunrise Engineering recommended reducing the major-collector right-of-way from 82.5 feet to 60 feet to lower construction and maintenance costs and still accommodate sidewalks, bike lanes and landscape buffers; council asked for a tree list and suggested code updates to assign frontage maintenance to property owners and asked staff to return with a formal proposal next month.
At the Feb. 10 meeting, Sunrise Engineering presented proposed revisions to Tetonia’s public-works specifications for major collector roads, including a recommendation to reduce the right-of-way from 82.5 feet to 60 feet.
Rob Heusaveldt of Sunrise Engineering said a 60-foot right-of-way "would better serve the City," arguing it would be less expensive to install and maintain, deter roadside parking during snow season, and could be plowed in two passes instead of four. He said the narrower ROW could still accommodate a sidewalk, bike lane and landscape buffer and recommended a ribbon curb to avoid the higher maintenance needs of vertical curb and associated storm drainage infrastructure. Heusaveldt suggested adopting a Tetonia-specific supplement to the Idaho Standard Practice for Water and Collection (ISPWC) manual to capture local standards.
Mayor Brent Schindler said he favored the narrower layout for separating cyclists and pedestrians from automobile traffic and requested an approved list of low-rooting trees for landscape buffers to protect infrastructure. The council discussed making frontage-grass maintenance the responsibility of property owners by amending city code as part of the update. Staff will draft a formal proposal and any required code amendments for consideration next month.
