Members Present: James Steele, Chairman
Tom Wilson
Jane Miller
George Freebery
Members Absent: Mary Davis
Richard Mendelsohn
Chairman Steele called the meeting to order at 6:15 p.m. Roll call
was taken.
Minutes -- Mr. Wilson made a motion to accept the minutes of the May
meeting. Mr. Freebery seconded the motion. The motion was approved
unanimously.
Minor Sub-Division 79-81 & 83 W. 5th Street into 4 Lots –
This has been tabled by the Board of Adjustment.
SR 9 Planning Review for DELDOT – The Chair reported they met
with Pam Steinbeck of DelDOT today and informed her we would have
answers to our responses to the public meeting held in April at St.
Peters. Mary Davis has submitted her responses to DelDOT. They are
waiting for the Planning Commission’s responses to the following
questions:
How do you think the two-lane corridor concept addresses these issues
(cut-through traffic, need for pedestrian improvements, lack of roadway
capacity)? The public wants to make this a four-lane road rather than
a two-lane road. The four lanes run from 6th and Chestnut to the railroad
crossing on Delaware Street. Mr. Wilson asked why they don’t
bring the four lanes to Rte. 273 from the west side of 13 & 40
down to Washington Street before they start this construction? They
should bring the four lanes west rather than east. The last section
should be 6th and Chestnut down to 8th and Delaware Street. (Brief
discussion about the project took place. Discussion included suggesting
changes to the current plan.) Ms. Seneschal, City Planner, said that
asking them would be indicating that you want a delay. There is no
project planning done and no funding identified for that four-lane
extension. You would be suggesting they put the whole thing on hold
to do project planning and find funding.
The Chair said that all DelDOT is willing to give us is a piece at
a time. The Mayor Klingmeyer said the concept would reduce traffic
going through 6th Street. The other way creates a bigger problem.
The Chair said the plan was to close 6th Street off and direct that
traffic to 3rd Street. (Brief discussion took place about traffic
in this area.)
Mr. Carpenter (audience) said the closing of 6th Street at the cut-off
was discussed at the meeting of the St. Peters Trustees. Trucks that
want to get into the town from Route 9 will use the extension of Harmony
to get to 6th Street, then will have no place to go because they can’t
turn on 6th Street or continue on.
The Chair said this issue was addressed at today’s meeting.
DelDOT will be doing a traffic study in July and August to determine
how much truck traffic comes into New Castle. They are not finished
with this plan; they are still looking for public input to assist
with the project.
Ms. Miller said she would like to see more of the planning process;
she was not impressed with their presentation. She found it confusing.
Mayor Klingmeyer suggested having someone from the State attend the
next Planning Commission meeting to address questions. The Chair said
they plan on having another meeting in late fall/early winter. Funding
for the project is in the 2007-2008 timeframe. He agreed that having
someone from DelDOT at our next meeting is a good idea.
Ms. Seneschal said what DelDOT is looking for tonight is the Planning
Commission’s comments on the concepts that were presented at
the workshop in May. They have received comments from the public,
but they want the Planning Commission’s comments to represent
the people responsible for implementation of the Comprehensive Plan.
Which corridor concept do you prefer? The Chair’s preference
is a four-lane corridor. DelDOT didn’t expect over 50% of the
people to prefer a four-lane corridor. Mr. Wilson asked if their ideas
would have any impact on our comprehensive plan. We have a rule of
a 10 ft. setback from the street. Do you want them to put setbacks
on a four-lane highway? He prefers more than 10 ft. from a four-lane
highway. We should reconsider in the event we want a sidewalk or bike
lanes. Mr. Carpenter said they wanted curb, grass, sidewalk, business.
They wanted you walking in front of businesses and for those businesses
close to the street.
Ms. Seneschal said the bikeways and sidewalk would be inside the right-of-way
for the road so that the setbacks are measured from the edge of the
right-of-way, not the edge of the pavement. You wouldn’t want
them 10 ft. from the pavement, but by the time you have all of these
things, then the setback from the right-of-way is some distance. The
transportation plan has sketches showing a four-lane route through
Route 9 with bikeways and sidewalks.
What is your preference at Harmony Street – a traffic signal
or a roundabout? DelDOT would be willing to consider a roundabout
at Harmony Street and ferry cut-off. Their plan called for Harmony
Street to be extended out to the ferry cut-off. The Chair said they
were looking at a roundabout today at the corner of Washington and
7th Street. The Planning Commission prefers a traffic signal.
Are there aspects of the corridor that deserve more examination? The
Chair’s response would be safety. Everyone was in agreement.
Mayor Klingmeyer suggested tabling making comments until someone from
the State can provide answers to questions and you can look at the
maps in order to make the best decisions. The Chair said they could
table making a response until July.
The Chair reported meeting with DelDOT concerning Washington Street
and 7th Street. They gave us plans and we do have their plans with
us tonight. Ms. Seneschal explained the plans showing intersection
improvements, bicycle and pedestrian improvements that would go from
Washington Street down to 7th Street and across to South Street. This
is not a capacity enhancement project. DelDOT said their objective
is to get pedestrians and bicyclists to Battery Park. They started
at the intersection of 141, 273, and 9. She explained the sidewalk
plans and pedestrian refuge islands and crosswalks. This project should
reinforce the Gateway project. There was discussion about whether
the intersection would be appropriate for a two-lane roundabout to
replace the existing traffic light. DelDOT agreed to look at the pros
and cons of that option. There is a proposal for some street tree
improvements and pedestrian scale lighting. DelDOT will use the City’s
standard Victorian pedestrian fixture, but the City will be responsible
for the maintenance after installation and also the electric bill.
Down Washington Street they have proposed sidewalks on both sides
with crossings across each of the side streets that would meet the
new standards. A crossing north of 12th Street would be striped. They
have included pads for bus stops also. (An extended discussion about
sidewalks in front of the Deemer property took place.) The developer
is obligated to install sidewalks at the time 50% of the units are
occupied. The suggestion was made that if DelDOT gets the design done
within the next 12
months, then maybe the City would require the developer to install
that stretch of sidewalk. Otherwise, the developer would install a
temporary sidewalk that would need to be replaced. DelDOT inquired
about having the developer putting the money into escrow, but the
City felt that would not be an option. We looked at the intersection
of Washington Street and 7th Street; there are two alternatives. One
is a roundabout or curving Washington Avenue at Route 9 then “teeing”
7th Street directly into it. Advantages of the roundabout would be
it would maintain a direct access to downtown. Disadvantages are it
requires additional right-of-way ____ business that is on 7th Street
and it may encroach into the wetlands a bit. The second alternative
doesn’t require as much right-of-way and doesn’t impact
the wetlands, but creates a situation for people going south on Washington
Street and want to make a left turn onto 7th Street will have to wait
for break in a traffic. Currently it is handled by a three-way stop
sign. Mary Davis requested the State to provide signage informing
how to get to other routes before they get to New Castle. (Discussion
about the roundabout and “T” configuration took place.)
The two alternatives for sidewalks on south side of 7th Street, the
consensus would be well served by a sidewalk on the river side and
no sidewalk on the opposite side of the street. We pointed out to
DelDOT that the current Greenway ends at the railroad tracks, so you
have _____ between the end of the Greenway and these improvements
being installed to get people to Battery Park. We previously talked
to them about extending this project, but they can’t do it with
this funding. We can discuss a different source for funding this project.
On South Street they are proposing brick sidewalks and bulk outs for
street parking on one side. They are proposing light standards on
the downtown side of South Street. There was a lot of discussion about
the need for sidewalks on the other side of South Street. Some suggested
the sidewalk isn’t needed except near the Senior Center. The
Chair said there was a question about the parking lot; it does belong
to Brosius and Eliason.
Ms. Seneschal drafted a letter to DelDOT capturing what was discussed
at today’s meeting that the Planning Commission might want to
consider. The letter includes:
• Use brick sidewalks in the historic areas downtown and work
with Chip Patterson of Municipal Services and the Tree Commission
regarding street trees and location of utilities;
• Request they use City-approved lighting fixtures;
• Consider conversion of intersection from signal light to roundabout;
• Reinforce Gateway function;
• They asked about using solar energy for traffic lights. The
panels shouldn’t be on the lights themselves, rather they could
be put up in the park and then wire into the lights;
• Change signage along Route 9 west of New Castle to direct
traffic to Route 13.
• Look at 9th Street improvements;
• Look at sidewalk at Deemer property;
• Use roundabout alternative at Washington Street and 7th Street
intersection. The sidewalk on west side of 7th Street could be eliminated;
• Consider extending the limits of the project to the current
end of the Greenway project or locate another funding source. Extend
sidewalks on both sides of South Street from 5th Street to Battery
Park and include crosswalks on 3rd Street;
• Look at extending it on the south side if it wouldn’t
encroach on the existing structures.
(Discussion about the sidewalk along the side of the tennis courts
took place. Ms. Seneschal said they need to add a crosswalk across
South Street from the Senior Center into the City.)
Susan Keyser (audience) suggested having DelDOT give a presentation
for the roundabouts and crosswalks to us.
Ms. Seneschal informed that the current schedule calls for them to
develop plans further so they can then answer some of the questions.
They would then have a public meeting to present the concepts. This
probably wouldn’t come about until next year.
Mr. Carpenter expressed concern that we are preparing a letter to
be presented to DelDOT, but the work that has been done over the past
years is to stop the derogation of the quality of life on 6th Street
because it is the street that is used to go to the Wilmington. If
you go to the intersection of 7th and Washington the original curve
was done to discourage Route 9 traffic from going down 7th to South.
A traffic circle isn’t going to discourage anyone. He is opposed
to anything that helps traffic get through 7th to Harmony. The sidewalks
on 7th Street, the north side versus the south side. The north side
are almost non-existent and not maintained. We need those sidewalks.
Signage on Route 9 to discourage use of Washington Street will not
do the job. The trucks deliberately knock the signs down. DelDOT won’t
put up any more signs. Washington to Route 9 with a gentle curve is
fine.
Mr. Carpenter expressed more concern that the Planning Commission
is going to send a letter with these suggestions to DelDOT and a lot
of people in this town don’t agree with them.
(Discussion about a sidewalk on the Gambacorta side of the street
took place.)
We have a directive from the AG to look at 219 2nd Street –
We have scheduled a meeting for 7/5 at 6 p.m. (Discussion about ensuring
that all information pertinent to this meeting is available for the
meeting.) The meeting will be published on the bulletin board and
posted on the property.
Sharon Morgan, of Fox Rothchild, introduced herself as representing
the owner of 219 2nd Street. The subject subdivision was sought and
obtained in accordance with all applicable procedures and conformity
with the subdivision regulations of the City of New Castle including
the approval of the Historic Area Commission on 1/20/05. Should the
Planning Commission and City Council reconsider this application and
hold another hearing to reconsider its approval, my client disagrees
with that decision and his participation in any further proceedings
is involuntary and he reserves all his rights and _____ associated
within a reconsideration of the subdivision and the damages he has
sustained by not being able to move forward and obtain __________.
The Chair requested a copy of her statement. Ms. Morgan will comply.
Ms. Morgan thought the purpose of tonight was to discuss whether or
not another meeting was needed. The Chair informed that tonight’s
meeting is to schedule that meeting.
(Discussion about the timeframe noted in the letter that was received
from the Attorney General’s office then took place.)
Planning Commission Meeting Minutes
June 27, 2005
Page 5Adjournment -- Ms. Miller made a motion to adjourn the meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:20 p.m.
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