A favorable recommendation for an ordinance permitting golf carts on Warsaw city streets will not be forwarded on to the city council from the Traffic Commission.
A motion to recommend to the council that it approve the ordinance was defeated Wednesday by a vote of 2-3. Four of the nine Traffic Commission members were absent from the meeting. City Planner Jeremy Skinner and Councilwoman Cindy Dobbins voted in favor of the recommendation, with Warsaw Community Schools Director of Buildings and Grounds Dirk Felger, Traffic Commission Administrator and Warsaw Police Department Capt. Kip Shuter and Lt. Joel Beam voting against it.
The ordinance could still be presented to the city council by City Councilmen Mike Klondaris and Ron Shoemaker, who originally presented it to the Commission, but it would not move forward with the Commission’s blessing.
The Commission has reviewed and modified the ordinance during several meetings over the last few months.
At Wednesday’s meeting, the draft ordinance was changed again so that golf carts operating on city streets would have to be equipped with headlamps, tail lights, turn signals and brake lights.
Beam had suggested golf carts on city streets be required to have safety belts, but Klondaris argued they would have little effect if a golf cart was hit by an oncoming vehicle.
After the motion was made by Skinner to send the ordinance on to the council with a favorable recommendation, Beam said, “I still have concerns.”
Shuter agreed with Beam, adding, “I’ve been sitting on this board for 25 years, and in all reality I think this is a step backwards for the city. We do not allow any other off-road vehicles on city streets that you don’t have to register through the BMV like ATVs and things like that. I don’t think it’s safe – 250 to 300 pound vehicle versus a 4,000 pound vehicle. I’ve focused my entire career on safety.”
He said golf carts on city streets don’t belong in a city the size of Warsaw, a class 3 city.
Klondaris argued that there are bicycles and mo-peds on city streets and “golf carts are here.” Shuter said that as far as mo-peds go, the state has usurped the city’s authority on those; and it’s not safe to ride a bicycle on city streets, which is why he’s passionate about side paths, trails and greenways.
Shuter said the decision was ultimately up to the city council.
Felger said that as a city resident, the city is becoming more congested and allowing golf carts on the city streets would make them more congested.
While the ordinance didn’t get the Commission’s approval, it did unanimously approve the traffic impact study from A&F Engineering for the relocation of Aldi Grocery Store to the lot north of U.S. 30; south of Husky Trail and Patterson Street; and west of Parker Street, across from Culver’s.
Aldi has an existing store along U.S. 30 near Big R on the city’s east side. The future store will be approximately 18,090 square feet. The relocation was first presented to the city over a year ago. No timeframe for the move and construction was presented to the Commission Tuesday.
Matt Brown, with A&F Engineering, said the traffic study was very similar to ones done previously in the area. He said there were seven steps to the process, and he highlighted parts of the traffic impact study. A traffic count was conducted from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on a “typical weekday” in September.
Peak time for Parker Street/Menards Drive, considered the “major” street, was 4 to 5 p.m. with 755 vehicles, following by 5 to 6 p.m. with 737. For Husky Trail/Patterson Street, the “minor” street, peak time was 5 to 6 p.m. with 342.
Based on the study, Brown said a traffic signal will not be warranted at this intersection.
Dobbins made a motion to accept the traffic study, and it was approved 5-0.
Skinner provided the Traffic Commission with updates on other construction projects.
On the Husky Trail project, he said, “Spring of next year is what we’re shooting for.” Everything is in for the letting – all the right of way has been acquired and cleared, all the environmental work has been done and submitted to the state. He said everything appeared to be on schedule for a January bid letting with a spring construction timeframe. Utilities relocation work has started.
The city’s presentation on the Buffalo Street reconstruction project was given to the Regional Development Authority, Skinner said, and now the city is just waiting to hear back from them on grant funding. From that point, it will be submitted to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation for its approval.
“Hopefully, we’ll get that additional money to do the Buffalo Street project,” Skinner said, indicating it will be a spring construction project as well.
The city’s portion of the Buffalo Street project includes the reconstruction of the street, a new portion of Indiana Street wrapping around the old Indiana American Water Co. property, reconstruction of the alley to the west and the infrastructure underneath it all – including storm sanitary sewer – will be reconstructed as well.
Skinner said if Warsaw gets the Regional Cities funding, work on the drawings for the plaza at the north end of Buffalo Street will begin.
Preliminary engineering on the project will begin within the next month, but the city won’t go full steam ahead with the project until it hears whether or not it will receive the grant dollars. Construction isn’t expected until 2018, but the boat ramp at the end of Buffalo will be relocated next summer to an area just off Ind. 15, north of the Center Lake tennis courts.
Work on East Main Street has about two weeks left of work to go on it.
Felger reported Warsaw Community Schools is moving forward with pedestrian safety crossing with flashing lights in front of Lakeview Middle School on Smith Street. Shuter said they’ve been looking at that location for years, so the lights were a “big step forward.”
Equipment for the project is expected to arrive by next week.
