Eureka Road North: Reconstruction Neighborhood Meeting on 11.30.23

Takeaways from the meeting:

• About 50 residents attended to hear the details of the “scoping”^[1] information gathered to date. This was followed by Q&A from the audience, with questions based on pedestrian safety, project costs and a construction time frame. See the city’s webpage on this project here.
  
• City officials did a commendable job of keeping the group mostly focused and on point. Residents responded with thoughtful questions and remained civil throughout the meeting.
• The City included recent helpful traffic data, with a speed study, and explained the pros and cons of mill and overlay^[2] vs. reclamation.^[3]
• They unveiled the potential to realign the Regional Trail crossing at Smithtown/Eureka to two 90 degree crossings.

The meeting was productive and seemed somewhat reassuring to the residents.

Some key opportunities were missed by the City:

• First: To make known, at the beginning of the presentation, that there is $0 (no)  special assessment for the project.  Residents may have discussed design options differently if their primary concern was not out-of-pocket costs to finance the project.

• Next: Provide handouts explaining right-of-way (ROW):
  • The City owns the ROW and can take corrective actions, as needed, to comply with its ordinance. Full stop. For some reason, the staff lips stayed motionless when it came to explaining and enforcing ROW. Ord. 901.01. A roadway project is the optimal opportunity for the city to regain “ownership” of its ROW. See The Cost of Reclaiming Right-of-Way.
    
  • City ordinance 901.01 does not allow resident construction or landscaping in the ROW. Read the Ordinance here. Contrary to the existing ordinance, Staff mistakenly talked about protecting trees as close as five feet to the roadway surface–in the right-of-way.
    
  • Maps that included the ROW marked on the properties. Find your right-of-way here.
• Finally, incorporate an introduction to “Safe Route to Schools” study.

SCA editors’ comment: The City has and employs a Communications/Marketing Director. They should be utilized in developing a thorough communication plan for any project. 

History: Nov. 2023 Update

1. Scoping is the process of developing the project scope. 
2. A street maintenance technique that requires the removal of the top layer (2″) of a street by the grinding action of a large milling machine. After the top layer is removed, a new layer of bituminous pavement is put in its place.↑
3. This process pulverizes an existing pavement and base materials, mixing the resulting mass with water and cement, and then repaving it as a base that can be finished with a concrete or asphalt overlay. ↑