1994-03-10 Work Session
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MINUTES OF WORK SESSION, MARCH 10, 1994
PAGE 971
ASSEMBLY
The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners held a Work
Session on Thursday, March 10, 1994, at 10 00 A M in Room 501 of
the County Administration Building, 320 Chestnut Street,
Wilmington, North Carolina
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Members present were Commissioners Sandra Barone; William A
Caster; William E sisson, Jr ; Vice-Chairman E L Mathews, Jr ;
Chairman Robert G Greer; County Manager, Allen O'Neal; County
Attorney, Wanda Copley; and Deputy Clerk to the Board, Teresa P
Elmore
Chairman Greer called the Work Session to order and stated the
purpose of the meeting is to discuss the newly revised Greater
Wilmington Urban Area Transportation Plan He welcomed all those
present
Mr Tom Newnam, Thoroughfare Planning Engineer with N C
Department of Transportation, gave a brief history of the
transportation plan In 1968, a study began which resulted with
the first transportation plan in 1972 This plan stayed in effect
until 1982 when another study began and was followed by the 1985
plan The latest revised plan is the result of a study that began
in 1990 The usual shelf life of a plan is eight to twelve years
depending on how fast an area grows
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Maps with traffic counts were presented to show the major
growth areas Greenville Loop Road increased by 10 1% since 1970
South College Road in front of the University has increased from
12,800 v p d in 1970, to 39,900 v P d in 1989 In December 1993,
the traffic count was 59,000 v p d Other major areas of traffic
growth were on Market Street and across the Cape Fear River Bridge
Projections of traffic trends for the year 2010 were given based on
a projected population of 170,900 people and 77,700 jobs
Mr Newnam reported in developing this latest plan, extensive
public hearings were held on July 8, 1991 and March 31, 1992 Then
a technical plan dated September 1, 1992, was presented to the
public Additional revisions were made and a plan dated March 25,
1993 was presented Again, major changes were made and the current
plan of October 25, 1993 is being presented
The plan still includes smith Creek Parkway; Independence
Corridor with the alignment through Empie Park instead of Forest
Hills; the Southern Outer Loop; and the Northern Outer Loop
connecting further north on US Highway 17 North An extension of
Military Cutoff is proposed to connect with the Northern Outer Loop
and another high-rise bridge over the cape Fear River is proposed
to connect further south at Titanium Road The alignment of Gordon
Road connecting to N Kerr Avenue was changed in order to have less
bearing on the airport property
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The main objectives of the Southern Outer Loop are to move
traffic northerly and to alleviate the traffic burden on College
Road Traffic on College Road can be further reduced, if the
alignment of the Southern Loop is extended to connect with Eastwood
Road and over to smith Creek Parkway To expand College Road from
Shipyard to Wilshire will be too costly to pursue because of the
expense to buyout businesses along the corridor To build an
urban interchange at that location would cost $35 million To
build the proposed Southern Outer Loop would also cost $35 million;
however, more roadway and less right-of-way cost would be involved
The Technical Coordinating Committee (TCC) recommended the
plan to the Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) on September
28, 1993 At first, the TAC revised the plan by removing the
Randall Parkway Extension; changing the classification of Colonial
Drive to a minor thoroughfare; and using the Southern Outer Loop
opposition alternate route of Holly Tree Road to Greenville Loop
Road When tested, the TCC found that the Holly Tree Road to
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MINUTES OF WORK SESSION, MARCH 10, 1994
PAGE 972
Greenville Loop Road route would not alleviate enough traffic off
of College Road to make it worthwhile The TAC could have
submitted that plan to the Board of Transportation; however, the
TCC would not recommend the plan as adequate At the next TAC
meeting, Randall Parkway Extension was resubmitted and an alignment
over Hewletts Creek was selected for the Southern Loop This is
the plan being presented now and called the October 25, 1993 plan
Presently, the plan is approved by Navassa, Leland, ;--,
Wrightsville Beach and the TAC The city of Wilmington approved
the plan without Randall Parkway Extension to Hooker Road Because
the loss of this road would significantly effect travel on Eastwood
Road, the County and Wrightsville Beach will have to approve the
deletion before the plan could be processed as an adopted plan
The plan also needs approval by Brunswick County and Belville
Vice-Chairman Mathews asked if other alternatives were
considered to connect Randall Parkway with Hooker Road?
Mr Newnam answered that the intent of the plan has always
been to build Randall Parkway on the University's property The
original plan was for a more southerly route crossing at the ball
fields In 1985, the alignment was moved to the northern part of
the campus
Randall Parkway Extension allows easterly traffic to access
commercial areas on College Road more efficiently and reduces
traffic on Wrightsville Avenue, Oleander Drive and Eastwood Road
without the segment there will be more traffic on College Road and
for longer distances
commissioner Barone commented another left turn lane is needed
on Randall Parkway for traffic heading north on College Road It
usually takes two light sequences to get through
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commissioner Sisson concurred that the pass-through traffic is
too immense for vehicles trying to make turns
Mr Newnam stated College Road should have been built as a
freeway with access roads The loop system was planned to be a
freeway to provide major traffic flow and allow College Road to be
a main street
Chairman Greer asked when will the various road projects
begin?
Mr Newnam answered smith Creek Parkway is the only funded
project with rights-of-way acquisitions in process Construction
will begin on the eastern end this summer
commissioner Sisson asked what is the argument against
extending Randall Parkway?
Mr Newnam replied the University has concern about the
alignment In the beginning the land was vacant, but it now serves
as a major parking area
Mr Newnam stated there will be no simple solutions to solving
traffic problems because of continual growth With the development
of the southern end of the County, there will be increased demand
on the major corridors If other roads are not built, it will mean
widening Masonboro Loop Road and Greenville Loop Road and some
major modifications to South College Road in order to improve
traffic
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commissioner Caster asked what happens if one of the governing
bodies does not approve the plan?
Mr
the TAC
Newnam replied the federal government requires approval by
State law requires policy boards to independently adopt
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MINUTES OF WORK SESSION, MARCH 10, 1994
PAGE 973
the plan The plan will be taken back to the City of Wilmington to
see if they will reconsider The plan cannot be submitted to the
Board of Transportation without approval of the major participants
Planning Director Dexter Hayes asked if the state will change
the law and recognize the authority of the Metropolitan Planning
Organization?
Mr Newnam answered currently the Department of Transportation
is debating changing the General statutes by giving the power to
the same organization as the federal government The state law
dates back to 1969 and the federal law dates back to 1962
Mr Newnam felt the road will never be built without the
University's approval Hopefully the boards can work together for
a compromise It could be an asset to the University if the
parking lots were spread out in other areas The state may not
allocate the funds for the road unless the University wants the
road built
County Manager O'Neal asked what are the objections from the
University?
Mr Bob Walton, Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs at UNCW,
answered the academic buildings are 160 feet from the edge of the
property lines and the right-of-way needed for Randall Parkway is
100 feet Randall Drive is about 35 feet from UNCW's property
line The University does not want to move the convenient parking
from Kenan AUditorium, the academic buildings and Randall Library
Once past the water tank, the University is willing to work with
DOT The University's Board of Trustees felt the proposed
alignment would totally destroy the University The Trustees are
also concerned for the safety of the students when crossing the
heavy traffic currently, a traffic study is being performed with
the results expected in two months
commissioner sisson stated there are many universities with
major streets going through the campus with classrooms right next
to the streets Other academic institutions have survived with
centralized parking facilities and deck parking
Chairman Greer stated the Board will consider adoption of the
plan at the meeting on March 14, 1994 He reiterated if the County
accepts the plan as it is, that does not guarantee the road will
ever be built He thanked Mr Newnam for the presentation
Mr Scott Lane with the city of Wilmington gave an update on
the smith Creek Parkway Project
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting adjourned at 11 25 A M
Respectfully submitted,
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Teresa P Elmore
Deputy Clerk to the Board
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