Year in Preview: Discussions on intersection changes, bike and pedestrian facilities set for 2017

Shelby County residents will have the opportunity this month to voice what they would like to see in regard to bicycle and pedestrian facilities.

The county is hosting two public workshops where residents can see what facilities exist and can give suggestions as to what they would like to see in the future. 

“It’s not so much designed to say, ‘This is a project; this is what we’re going to do,’” said Chief Civil Engineer Scott Holladay. “It’s more of a project to define what the needs and wants are.”

Rankings A through F on existing bike and pedestrian facilities, such as bike lanes and sidewalks, will be available at the meetings to give an idea of potential areas of improvement. Residents can  also give input on the areas they believe need the most help, Holladay said. For example, if community members would like to see more pedestrian facilities around schools or recreation areas, they can give those suggestions to the county.

Workshops are planned for Jan. 10 at Chelsea City Hall from 4 to 7 p.m. and Jan. 12 at the Shelby County Services Building in Pelham from 4 to 7 p.m. Both meetings will have the same content and will be an “open house” format. 

Members of the project team also will be available to discuss ideas and answer questions.

After the meetings are held and information gathered, there will be another meeting to show the results of the public workshops. This meeting will likely be several months after the January workshops, Holladay said. The workshop will also be used to help prepare a bicycle and pedestrian plan for the county.

Questions and comments regarding the project can be sent to Holladay at sholladay@shelbyal.com or at 669-3880.

In addition to preliminary steps on this bike and pedestrian plan project, an Advance Planning Programming & Logical Engineering (APPLE) study on the intersection of Shelby County 39 and Shelby County 47 will begin sometime in the new year.

The study will help identify potential obstacles of the project as well as help establish a cost estimate for the project and determine what sort of funding would be most suitable, either local or state funding, or a combination of funding sources.

A kickoff meeting regarding the study was held in December, Holladay said, and work researching the intersection was set to be ordered soon. Once it starts, the study will last about two months.

Through the study, potential plans for reworking the intersection will be developed. 

This intersection, in front of Chelsea City Hall, was a big topic of discussion during the recent mayoral election. The study will last two months, Holladay said. 

“I’m glad this project is back on the front burner,” Chelsea Mayor Tony Picklesimer said.