Moon Lake Road multi-use trail and safety

1:34:06Commissioner Weightman. Thank you, Chairman. Um Just just one thing and if if you all remember last year, um, you know, I live in Water's Edge and we had unfortunately we had a student that also lived in there. um got hit crossing the road, going to school on Moon Lake Road and and unfortunately lost his life. So um the parents have reached out to me and started a petition in the neighborhood about doing an eight foot multi-use path on the west side of Moon Lake Road, which is it's already been designed

1:34:37and we already own the right-of-way on that side of uh Moon Lake Road. And it would basically start at the beginning of like Bellhaven, which is the main entrance that has a has a light where the kids could And everyone cross, you know, um safely there and then it will extend from there all the way down to the McDonald's. You know, the family again, they they'd like to have something done in hit his their son Jaden's honor. Um I think we can talk through that at a later date. So basically Uh let me make sure I get this right, Dan.

1:35:07I need to make a motion. It looks like the project's currently funded, the project would extend from McDonald's to the third entrance. Um cost is estimated at 800,000. uh design's been done right away's already been required so I just need to make a motion to To move funds from right-of-way acquisition to build up a trail that um Like I said, design's been done for the widening of Moon Lake Road, so we're hopeful that Not much of it'll have to be ripped up, but that'll you know, I think it's

1:35:37right now it's about safety and

1:35:39just Yeah, we're just gonna advance construction on that section using the currently budgeted right away funds that are available in the budget today.

1:35:49Okay, so that needs to be in my motion, so Want to take right-of-s to move over to the Multi-use tra uh path on Moon Lake Road. Second. And

1:35:59discussion?

1:35:59Discussion by the motion is second with discussion by Commissioner Starkey.

1:36:02So I I never understood why we put a sidewalk there instead of a trail. when that road goes down to the park. I mean th and to the high school and kids could Um but I g I think w I think um you weren't here then, but um our former administrator had a niece or a goddaughter who was killed also walking on that road before we had Uh a sidewalk there, because there used to not even be a sidewalk. And I think we just kind of rushed to get that sidewalk in to make it as safe as

1:36:33possible. But It's the perfect place for a multi use trail. And um I wish we had done it a long time ago. Um

1:36:41with the widening which will be eight or nine years ago.

1:36:44Well that that is my next question because I knew someone who lived on that road whose house was con um whose house was purchased through eminent domain Like twelve years ago For the widening of Moon Lake, so what w I w was wondering when when was that road supposed to be widened and why why did we buy all the all those houses in the height of real estate and and then just kinda sit on it for so long.

1:37:09Well as I understand that right away it was acquired when it was in the capital budget pre oh eight. And then the crash happened and a lot of those projects got moved out of the out of the budget, out of the capital budget, and now it's back in the capital budget, but it's in Uh fiscal year twenty eight, twenty nine for construction. I don't remember off the top of my head exactly. So a lot of that right away's already been acquired, specifically in this area. We don't need any right-of-way to do the work. So we can do the path today and then, you know, ten years from now when we actually are widening the road You know, we

1:37:39may be able to save some of it we may not, but it will be there. At least now for the interim until the road actually gets done in ten or so years.

1:37:46Are you saying we'll have to tear up the trail when they widen the road?

1:37:50There is a potential that the construction will impact the trail. Because it's in the same right-of-way.

1:37:55Can we not build so is that part of um grading? Uh grading and

1:38:03I would hate to build it and then tear it up three, four years later.

1:38:06Mike Mike Carball, Assistant County Administrator. Yeah, I mean yes, you would uh there's there's gradation issues. We'll we'll have to do some elevations. We'll project management will look and see what they can do through through design efforts to see what we can potentially save. But you know, it it it it it definitely would see significant hits when and if we we you know when when that road is widened. You know, right now it's in the plan for 2028, I believe, or it's 10 years from now, roughly. But it would it would provide the public with the benefit to use the multi

1:38:37use path now and today. Um You know, and and it's all part it's all part of the project. So Um

1:38:46Seems to me we can find a way to elevate it. So that um We don't have to tear it up as much I I hope you can Look at that as deeply as possible. Is it the east side or the west side of the road? West side. Correct. What if we tore up the sidewalk and put it on the east side that's already elevated? Because that doesn't Does that side get graded?

1:39:06I I I believe that the problem is is that sidewalk is on the east side and it was crossing Moon Lake Road. So calving it on the side where the residential activity is is is actually safer.

1:39:16And that the design for Moon Lake Road is to have the multi-use trail on the west side of Moon Lake Road and have sidewalk on the east side. And it's been very, very, very used. I mean it's uh and this is a good thing and I know we're gonna be able to save most of it it sounds like I get it, but it's comes down down to to safety. Um and I can tell you, Commissioner, if you remember remember back it was before I got here, uh Henry was a commissioner but You guys had to um decided to repave Moon Lake Road, make it wider with a shoulder at the time, and then postpone Moon

1:39:47Lake Road ten years, or quite frankly, it probably would have been started in the next couple of years, but again we had a couple other deaths. So You all made the right decision in my opinion, um at the time. So but that's that's part of the delay.

1:39:59Let me let me ask a question. If if if we were to put it on the so the park is on the east side, the high school's on the east side. And the trail that's gonna be on Ridge Road is on the east side. So eventually they're gonna need to cross. So would it make sense to just go ahead and put some safe crossing areas. and build it on the east side? And not tear it up. up? Just just asking.

1:40:33Road and and the the new one we installed and I can't remember the name of the intersection now.

1:40:38But you can put p uh good trail and you know, we have a trail expert on staff, but so maybe we need to run this by her. But um you can put s good pedestrian um trail crossing signals that when someone presses the button the light comes on and things flash so we

1:40:57Th there will be some redesign efforts that have to go into this and so if if that's something that the board wants us to look at, we'll we'll certainly could you know have a look at that when we when we get to the the technical experts. Uh you know the

1:41:11I'm I'm in support of this. I just

1:41:17And and they're gonna have to cross the street anyway probably. So

1:41:19and and again, Commissioner, we don't know how much it's gonna be. torn up. I mean you know we The the intent is to get this built now on the west side so because that's where a lot of the pedestrian traffic is from the neighborhood. They can cross it a couple of signalized intersections today. So to minimize the redesign effort and and some of the other effort we're doing out there. That's kinda the intent is get this done now. Yeah, if you're not going to be able to if Moon Lake gets funded for construction in a decade. you know, then at that point we can go into figuring out how

1:41:50much we can save. You know, you got sidewalk on one side, you got this on the other side, there's other things that we're gonna try to save at the same time. But that's part of the d the effort at that time. Commissioner Mary Allen wants to inject this.

1:42:00Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And um, you know, it was very tough when we did have a few deaths out there. That made us move real quick to just make make the move to make it safe and the and getting that sidewalk done. I think it's a good idea to do the west side as quick as we can. And just because of the difficulty of the road, the terrain, the geography that's out there, some of it is going to be torn out. Uh I've actually got another intersec intersection I believe is look being looked at right now to actually put another crossing light out there by the reserve, I think it is. Um so the more crossings we can have to

1:42:30make that happen, when we do have to tear up part of it, at least they can make a move to the other side. But I think it's a good thing. and thinking about funding, because it's always about how are you going to fund these things. Right now we're looking at taking our mobility fees down three percent. And per every district it's about nine hundred thousand dollars a year. Well just one year of that three percent that's in in the in for this area would actually fund that and could actually keep that money in. You'd have the funding for the road in probably just a f a few short years if we didn't bring that down. So that

1:43:01may be part of our budget discussion coming up. Do we really want to pull that down at this point in time? I know you're comfortable doing it, but I I heard there's even conversation take it down further. So I will tell you for the west side It's very difficult to get a lot of projects funded. It gets pushed off like Connie Line Road. Uh this is a project in the middle, I think, or would be out still on the other side. This we east side or central?

1:43:28I think that's a good thing.

1:43:31So there's like nine hundred grand. If we do bring this down that three percent, we're gonna take away funding to actually do projects that that need to get done. And I will tell you, the great job they're doing on the Ridge Road extension, there will be more traffic, which which strengthens the importance to get this road done. So I think we should really take it have you know but uh have a conversation with the budget director and you know go go look at do we really want to pull that back down another three percent when we need Still these projects do get done.

1:43:57We have a motion and a second on the table. Are we ready to we we're done with the discussion now? Okay. All in favor? Aye. Aye. All opposed, same sign. Motion passes. Thank you. Commissioner Weightman else, sir? No, sir. Thank you. Commissioner Mariano.