More Talk about Bolt-on Footbridge for West Salem and at Grant

Just a few items to note in passing at the neighborhood associations this week.

(Also, all the City links are going to be screwed up sometime today as the City rolls to the new site and changes the urls. Sorry about that!)

West Salem

WSNA meets today, Monday the 3rd, in the minutes from last month there is a large grid of comments on the SKATS TIP from the Land Use Subcommittee. As it's not always clear what they are commenting on in particular, they are a little hard to understand.

Bolting on to existing OR-22 ramp at Edgewater
doesn't enhance connectivity very much

But they do keep pushing the idea of an overcrossing on Wallace at Edgewater in place of an undercrossing along Second Street and the RR path route.

Bolting an overcrosing onto the existing ramp

While this idea might seem attractive as "value-engineering," it fails to be very useful, especially as it does not relate to the Union Street Railroad Bridge and instead connects the Edgewater path system and Center Street Bridge path. It seems drafted more for the convenience of drivers than for people on foot and on bike, who would have to take a circuitous route from the Union Street Bridge. (See here for previous notes and more detailed criticism of the idea.)

Also in the minutes from last month was an interesting map from 1997 of a concept for Marine Drive. It comes from the Wallace Road Local Access and Circulation Study. While this has been mentioned from time to time in the whole SRC debate, I'm not sure anyone has published an image of the map. So that was interesting to see.

Marine Drive concept in 1997

The West Salem Neighborhood Association meets Monday the 3rd at 7:00 P.M. in Roth’s West, Mezzanine (1130 Wallace Rd NW).

Grant Neighborhood

Wallace at Edgewater

Then, a few days later, folks from West Salem will be presenting to the Grant neighborhood on Thursday their ideas for that overcrossing at Wallace and Edgewater. I guess they're really trying to gin up support. (See above and here for more on why it's not a very good idea.)

From Seed of Faith Daycare Hearing Notice

They're also going to be talking about the application for a Conditional Use Permit for a Daycare operated by Seed of Faith Ministries.

The Neighborhood Association has already drafted a letter outlining some concerns and request for further information about:

1. Traffic on Winter Street which is designated for the Family Friendly Bikeway and is also the location of the Grant Community School bus stop and family pickups;
2. Has the applicant contacted all of the adjacent neighbors to receive any of their concerns;
3. Has the applicant contacted the Grant Community School Principal to discuss the impact they might have on Winter Street;
4. Their east parking lot is currently allowed to be used by Grant School, have changes been discussed with the Grant Community School Principal;
5. Has the applicant contacted the Boys & Girls Club to discuss impacts on the neighborhood and traffic and moving students between the daycare site and the club;
6. What size buses will be used by the Salem-Keizer School District Transportation Department to transport students to and from this site and can they maneuver the east parking lot and/or can they maneuver the entrance and exit from the public alley onto Gaines and Market streets safely;
7. What is the staff size and how will that affect the onsite parking uses.

Presumably the discussion will drill into these in further detail.

The Grant Neighborhood Association meeting is on Thursday the 6th at 6:15pm, in the Library of Grant Community School, 725 Market St NE.