Neighbors urge traffic management, signal study and buried utilities as Quartz Hill builds out

Multiple residents voiced concern that cumulative development on Quartz Hill and Court(s) Hill Road will intensify daily traffic on nearby feeder streets and create safety hazards.

Mark Hinkins, a property owner on Benton Drive, said the city appears to be concentrating new housing along Court(s) Hill and warned that Benton Drive is already used as a high‑speed cut‑through. "Pro development, totally believe that we need multifamily housing... but I think we have to look at the wider traffic management for the neighborhood," Hinkins told the commission.

John Pruitt, who lives near River Park Drive, said hundreds of vehicles traveled his street during the Carr Fire and that heavy traffic has damaged the roadbed; he asked whether a traffic signal or other control will be installed at the Terra Nova/Court(s) Hill intersection in the future. Traffic staff said the project's traffic report studied that intersection and concluded it did not meet the standards (warrants) for a traffic signal or stop control at this time; staff noted other mitigation tools such as enforcement, signage, and targeted traffic‑calming can be used.

Pruitt also urged burying overhead electrical lines during any widening of Court(s) Hill Road for resilience after fires: "I really wish you had buried the electrical when you widen Court's Hill Road," he said. Staff responded that utility burial and other large infrastructure changes are funding‑ and scope‑dependent and would require separate funding and planning commitments.

Commissioners and staff agreed to flag Benton Drive for further review and suggested the city consider no‑parking restrictions during red‑flag conditions along Court(s) Hill as a short‑term measure to preserve evacuation lanes.