By KAREN CIMINO WILSON
DavidsonNews.net

Davidson’s Town Board on Tuesday unanimously approved a revised local road planning map that will be submitted to regional transportation planners. The new map proposes increased connectivity throughout Davidson and some new roads as a way to relieve anticipated future traffic in town.

In other action. Town commissioners:

• Voted unanimously to support an amendment to the Mecklenburg County Solid Waste Plan that would allow the town to contract with a company called Reventure. The company would take up to 50,000 tons of the county’s yard waste annually and produce fuel from the waste in a site in western Mecklenburg County. The county collected 92,000 tons of yard waste last year. The company would also take up to 370,000 tons of solid waste per year. Reventure plans to create a renewable energy industrial park with a biomass plans at the anchor. Plans also include a 4-megawatt solar plant and a an alternative fueling station. Mecklenburg County officials plan to meet with all cities to get approval of the changes.
• Approved new solid waste fees that take effect this fiscal year. (See chart below for information about the new fees.)
• Appointed Lillian Smith as the new Town Clerk.

NEW ROAD MAP

The board-endorsed plan will be submitted to the Mecklenburg Union Metropolitan Planning Organization (MUMPO), which manages a regional thoroughfare map.

Detail from new Davidson thoroughfare map that the town baord voted on Tuesday. Click to download a full map.

MUMPO’s current Thoroughfare Plan, adopted in 2006, shows a major new road starting at the intersection of Davidson-Concord and East Rocky River roads, heading north to Grey Road northeast of the McConnell neighborhood, and ending at N.C. 115 near the Iredell County line.

A specific alignment has not been designed for this route, and no state or local funding has been identified to construct the road within the next 25 years. The MUMPO Thoroughfare Plan is not updated on a regular basis, but local jurisdictions are permitted to provide recommended amendments, additions or deletions to the MUMPO.

Davidson’s philosophy for moving traffic through the town is to provide as much connectivity in the road network as possible to reduce the number of miles traveled by motorists.

In late 2009, the N.C. Department of Transportation asked MUMPO to create a Comprehensive Transportation Plan. Work began in early 2010 to create a draft plan, which will include all modes of travel and will replace the present-day MUMPO Thoroughfare Plan.

The plan is expected to be ready for adoption by 2011. Over the next year, Davidson and other jurisdictions have the opportunity to propose changes to the plan, according to town officials.

The town staff held a public workshop with residents on June 7 to discuss options and get input. The planning commission reviewed citizen input and came up with recommendations that the council approved Tuesday.

The recommendations are: to reclassify all Davidson roads except for Griffith Street and N.C. 73 as minor thoroughfares (2-lane roads); to realign Bailey Road Extension to fit existing roads; add a Shearer Road extension; add a Barra Road Extension; delete the North Parkway Alignment from the MUMPO thoroughfare plan; and maintain portions of Griffith and the entire N.C. 73 corridor as a major thoroughfare.

Town Planning Manager Lauren Blackburn said traffic will increase on local roads over the next 25 years, but it will be due more to local traffic than traffic passing through the area.

“All of our roads are going to multiply,” she said. “It is in large part due to local residents driving.”

That increases the importance of improving connectivity, she said.

Ms. Blackburn said residents reviewed three options on June 7: the 2003 Davidson route, the 2004 MUMPO route and the new the Shearer Road extension option

“The Shearer Road option was much preferred by everyone,” Ms. Blackburn said. “Folks did recognize there was a connectivity benefit.”

Ms. Blackburn said the next year will be important in the planning process.

“We’re going to have to work very closely with our neighboring jurisdictions. There is no thoroughfare plan that recognizes the road that has just been extended, the Bailey Road Extension.”

Ms. Blackburn said MUMPO will make the final decision on any future road plans along with the N.C. Department of Transportation.

“Over the next year or so, we hope we will have all of these routes adopted. If it becomes more of an urgent issue, we have the option of bringing our thoroughfares to MUMPO,” she said.

Ms. Blackburn told commissioners that the recommendations would be taken to the MUMPO Technical Coordinating Committee if they were approved Tuesday. Then the committee would take its recommendation to the MUMPO.

“It’s a good approach,” Town Commission Brian Jenest said.

ENDORSING CONNECTIVITY

Davidson Mayor John Woods said the town continues to require road improvements that help improve the connectivity of the road network in the town.

“That has long been a part of our planning process. Connectivity has been an important part of our planning process,” Mayor Woods said. “We are part of a whole. We don’t operate as an island. The projected increase in traffic comes mostly from within us and not from outside sources. We’re going to all feel an increased level of traffic. That’s true not only in Davidson.”

Commissioner Connie Wessner said, “One of the neat things about this is we were able to discuss environmental impact having done the natural resource inventory.” (A committee of citizens and town officials in 2008-9 did a study of the town’s trees and other natural assets that is now helping to inform local policy making.)

RELATED DOCUMENTS AND COVERAGE

Download a copy of the planning staff analysis and recommendations to be voted on Tuesday (PDF), CLICK HERE>

July 12, 2010, “Board to vote on trash pickup fees, long-range road plan” – more about the thoroughfare plan in our Town Board preview.

[UPDATED AUG. 7: Minutes of  July 13, 2010 Town Board meeting, CLICK HERE>]