Ann Arbor's North Main corridor topic of two upcoming community meetings
A citizen-led task force that's spent the last year studying ways to improve Ann Arbor's North Main corridor will make its final recommendations to the City Council in July.
Before that happens, the task force is seeking additional input from the community, said David Santacroce, chairman of the North Main-Huron River Corridor Vision Task Force.
The public will have an opportunity to weigh in at a community meeting next Wednesday from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Ann Arbor Community Center, 625 N. Main St.
The North Main corridor study area.
City of Ann Arbor
The second of two scheduled community meetings will take place June 12 — again from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Ann Arbor Community Center.
The task force is working to finalize a set of recommendations that will go to the City Council by July 31. A new website dedicated to the project can be found at RenewNorthMain.org.
Draft plans presented by the task force's subcommittees back in March showed potential solutions for improving safety and accessibility for pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists traveling along North Main Street, potentially including a new roundabout and crosswalks.
Other solutions — including pedestrian bridges and a tunnel under the railroad tracks north of Depot Street — have been considered to improve access to riverfront destinations, including the MichCon site where the task force has laid out a vision for a new riverfront city park.
The task force also has been working on the city's plan for transforming city-owned property at 721 N. Main into a future greenway park.
Santacroce said many of the tentative solutions are aimed at addressing the lack of pedestrian access to amenities along the corridor. He's hoping for a large turnout at next Wednesday's meeting.
"This is the community meeting where we engage the public more broadly and say here are the issues we see," he said. "What we want to know is — are we missing anything? And what are people's ideas about potential solutions?"
After the task force submits its written report at the end of July, Santacroce said he expects the issue to be on the council's agenda as early as August.
The city's newly released Non-Motorized Transportation Plan update also includes some suggestions for a stretch of North Main Street that lacks accommodations for pedestrians and bicyclists.
One idea the city has discussed is reducing North Main from four to three lanes with added bike lanes and a center lane that could be reversible for incoming traffic in the morning and outbound traffic in the afternoon. The state has said it's willing to consider the idea.
Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.
Comments
Michigan Man
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 10:58 p.m.
North Main entrance/exit from Ann Arbor has sucked for years! Smart folks will just get off at the Barton Hills exit before they arrive in Ann Arbor. Foolish to think anything will ever get done to improve the appearance feel of entering Ann Arbor from the North.
Westfringe
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 4:25 p.m.
Add more lanes for cars please, 6 would be a good start.
ordmad
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 12:15 p.m.
@ DJBudSonic: Each of this taskforce's 15 or so meetings (and scads of sub-committee meetings) have been pubic and on the City's calendar. Citizens have been allowed (and encouraged) to speak at each and many have. Please get your facts right and then form an opinion, not form an opinion and make up facts to suit it.
DJBudSonic
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 3:21 p.m.
Hey I am just tired, as many are, of the same handful of people spending our money however they choose - do not presume what my motivation is for expressing my opinion. Since public input is fully considered by this group, why would one need a 'seat at the table'? But it is just false that no one appointed the neighborhood reps. Did they just show up? No, they were chosen by the task force members.
ordmad
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 2:52 p.m.
I did look. And besides the mandated appointments (member of Council -Smith and then Briere - and PAC - Grand, etc...), the representatives are just people, some of which have shown a willingness to get involved on a volunteer basis in other City business. And then there's a handful of representatives of interested organizations (Watershed, rowers, etc...). Those organizations picked their representatives and the taskforce did not pick it's members (that's just plain wrong). But, sure, cherry pick the few, take it out of context, ignore the majority of "regular joes" and argue an opinion without any basis in fact, drawing deep on your apparent disappointment that you didn't get a seat at the table.
DJBudSonic
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 2:30 p.m.
Take a look at the website that lists on the first page the members of the committee, and tell me if that seems like a group of regular folks. It is not. Almost all of these people are drawn, by mayoral appointment, from other committees and commissions. I did not suggest that there was no chance for public input, indeed, I have attended many meetings myself. But to suggest that this is a public-led initiative is a whitewash of the facts. The task force was appointed, and the neighborhood representatives were selected by the task force members. The day this initative was announced, I was in contact with task force members, seeking appointment to one of the open seats, either as a qualified representative of my neighborhood, or of a special interest group, like the seat for river users. I was told that all the positions had already been filled. If Ray Detter, Sandi Smith, Julie Grand, Sabre Briere, et. al. represent an unbiased public view, then I guess this can be called a public-led task force.
DJBudSonic
Mon, May 20, 2013 : 11:22 a.m.
These two meetings represent the 'non-appointed' publics only chance to give input to the big changes that are being suggested by this committee. I urge anyone who has an interest in this to attend. Calling this a citizen-led task force is a bit of a stretch. We are all citizens, so that much is true, but in the case of these task forces and commissions, some citizens are more equal than others. Get to the meeting, and see how a small group of connected people are preparing to spend your money on things that no one asked for.
Ryan J. Stanton
Wed, May 22, 2013 : 9:39 p.m.
There are countless people asking for the things they're talking about; I hear almost universal excitement in the community about these plans, but I understand not everyone likes improved walking and biking amenities and access to riverfront recreation.