CAUTION Macon    -  - Forest Hill Road Homepage

 

Resolution before Macon City Council

for redesign of Forest Hill Road improvements 

 

Macon, Ga

SOS forest

SPONSOR: NANCY WHITE

LAUREN BENEDICT


A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MACON, GEORGIA Establishing a Review Requirement for Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program Projects within the Corporate Limits of the City of Macon, Georgia; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.


WHEREAS, the City of Macon, its Mayor, and City Council have responsibility for the health, welfare and safety of its citizens, to include transportation systems and public safety; and


WHEREAS, the City can delegate responsibility for road improvements, but cannot abdicate its ultimate authority or responsibility for said improvements, or for their impact on the safety and well being of its citizens; and


WHEREAS, the City has, in cooperation with Bibb Country, authorized a one cent special local option sales tax to fund road improvement within the city and county; and


WHEREAS, the City has never formally delegated responsibility for road design and construction to the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program, but has informally allowed said agency to manage certain projects within the jurisdiction of the City, with the understanding that the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program would safeguard the interests and welfare of city and county residents, to include maximizing effective public participation in the planning process; and


WHEREAS, the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program has ignored the concerns of the Mayor, the City Council, and the Citizens of Macon regarding certain projects, and particularly Forest Hill Road; and


WHEREAS, the design of Forest Hill Road prematurely proceeded despite these concerns, with exaggerated traffic volumes, at a waste of public funds; and


WHEREAS, implementation of that design promises to waste substantial additional funds in initial construction and ongoing costs for maintenance and policing; and


WHEREAS, the integrity and quality of neighborhoods and the aesthetics of our roadways are priorities of the City and its Citizens, essential to the continued livability and economic viability of our city; and


WHEREAS, the design of Forest Hill Road as currently configured ignores these concerns, threatens the viability of the neighborhoods bordering on and adjacent to Forest Hill Road, impedes access by residents and emergency vehicles to said properties, promises to encourage excessive speeds, and marginalizes many of the properties bordering Forest Hill Road; and


WHEREAS, modern traffic planning and “traffic calming” technologies would resolve council and citizen concerns, but have not been utilized on Forest Hill Road despite repeated requests by the Mayor, the City Council, and Citizens; and


WHEREAS, the expansion of Forest Hill Road threatens to generate additional traffic that cannot be safely handled by other segments of the city’s street system, most particularly Vineville Avenue and Park Street; and


WHEREAS, the Forest Hill Road project as planned will greatly increase the rate and volume of storm runoff, imposing substantial costs and liabilities on the City of Macon; and


WHEREAS, the City assumes the burden of maintaining and policing roads and streets within its limits once completed, with said burden and cost aggravated through the inappropriate design and sizing of streets; and


WHEREAS, the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program has not been responsive to concerns of citizens and members of the City of Macon’s Mayor, City Council and staff; and has therefore hindered the City in its performance of essential responsibilities; and


WHEREAS, portions of Forest Hill Road and certain other city roads were designated as temporary state highways (namely, State Routes 1125, 1125TA, 1125TB and 1125TC) effective August 28, 2004 by the Georgia Department of Transportation in connection with the Forest Hill Road project.


NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and Council of the City of Macon and it is hereby so resolved by the authority of the same that:


1. The City of Macon hereby requires formal review and approval by the City of all road designs, new or pending, at preliminary and final stages, to include Forest Hill Road, within the city limits of the City of Macon.


2. The President of the City Council is hereby directed to inform the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program and the Georgia Department of Transportation of this resolution.


SO RESOLVED this _19th_ day of   February, 2008.

____Miriam Paris______

President, City Council

_______________________

Mayor





Mayor Reichert's - Veto dated - Feb 29, 2008
scans:
page 1
page 2


Problems with the Mayors veto:

1- The City of Macon is always consulted for their input whenever any state or federal construction monies are to be expended within the jurisdiction of the City.   State and federal agencies always work to accommodate the needs and desires of local jurisdictions.   Mayor Reichert is in error when he states that Macon has no say in the design of state/federal roads through our jurisdiction.

2- Planning for the FHR project is incomplete and it is still ongoing.  The costs for planning this road are minuscule compared to the costs of construction of this plan.  Additionally, any future costs for repair and reconstruction of current design errors can dwarf all the original cost estimates combined if this design is bad.  Majority of citizens and Macon Council say this particular design is bad. 

3- Mediation was a farce.  Bibb County instigated the mediation and entered into it in bad faith.   No county or city representatives were present in mediation who had standing to effect the outcome.  This was a violation of the mediation rules.   Mediation was invalid from the start and the FHR Team raised this issue at the beginning.  The mediation contractors who made money off this futile mediation exercise insisted that we continue with the mediation.   Citizens complied with their request to avoid being labeled as "quitters".  We are not quitters.

4- Mayor Ellis's administration gave an improper and illegal approval to designate FHR as a temporary state route.  The Mayor Ellis document is null and void.  GDOT is operating on flawed process documents.



[previous drafts]

A Resolution Establishing a Review Requirement for Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program Projects within the Corporate Limits of the City of Macon, Georgia.

 

WHEREAS, the City of Macon, its Mayor, and City Council have responsibility for the health, welfare and safety of its citizens, to include transportation systems and public safety; and

 

WHEREAS, the City may enter into contractual or cooperative relationships with other governmental entities to address said responsibilities, but recognizes that such arrangements do not absolve the City of its ultimate responsibility for the health, welfare and safety of its citizens; and

 

WHEREAS, the City has contracted with the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program for management of transportation projects funded by a one cent special local option sales tax and associated Federal and State grants; and

 

WHEREAS, said delegation of authority was made with the understanding that the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program would safeguard the interests and welfare of city and county residents, to include maximizing effective public participation in all aspects related to the planning of road projects; and

 

WHEREAS, the integrity and quality of neighborhoods and the aesthetics of our roadways are priorities of the City and its Citizens, essential to the continued livability and economic viability of our city, as clearly demonstrated in the recent “Visual Preference Survey” sponsored by the Macon-Bibb County Planning & Zoning Commission; and

 

WHEREAS, all of the critical objectives cited above, together with pedestrian and vehicular circulation and safety, can be achieved through good planning and creative, context-sensitive street design alternatives; and

 

WHEREAS, the City assumes the burden of maintaining and policing roads and streets within its limits once completed, with said burden and cost aggravated through the inappropriate design and sizing of streets; and

 

WHEREAS, the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program’s response to concerns of citizens and members of the City of Macon’s Mayor, City Council and staff has been inadequate, and has therefore hindered the City in its performance of essential responsibilities:

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Mayor and Council of Macon, Georgia, that:

1. The City of Macon’s designation of the Macon-Bibb Road Improvement Program as its agent for management, design and construction of streets and roadways within the corporate limits of the City of Macon is hereby amended to require formal review and approval by the City of all road designs, new or pending, at preliminary and final stages, within said city limits.

 

2. This requirement shall be effective immediately; and shall include but is not limited to the following projects:

 

Southside Connector (Richard Penneman extension)

Forest Hill Road

________________________

 

SO RESOLVED this ________ day of _____________, 200_.

older edit of this page

- CAUTION Macon -

Forest Hill Road