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NOTES FROM THE
PRESIDENT
Keeping up with the city of Austin is hard to do. and the month of February has been especially difficult. On February 7, city staff came to our area to start the process of developing a traffic calming plan that includes COVNA and the Tanglewood Oaks neighborhoods. Each of you should have received a survey in the mail asking for input on how the city should proceed. At the meeting, the city announced that there is $900,000 in the budget this year for traffic calming, and our area is one of those designated for consideration. More than 20 people attended the meeting, with a wide range of opinions. The next step in the process is the appointment of a working group to study the issue and develop a plan for the area. The process will end with an actual vote in the area where each household will get to submit a ballot expressing their support or opposition to the plan. Meanwhile, I have scheduled a meeting with city staff and other area neighborhood association representatives to discuss the Davis Ln/Westgate Blvd projects. The purpose of this meeting is to receive answers to specific questions submitted to them previously on topics such as design and funding. Shortly after this meeting, my goal is to start discussions with the other associations to see if we can develop a consensus position that each association can ratify and then present to the city. I will have additional details and information about these and other issues at our first meeting of the year on February 18. I strongly encourage all of you to attend since there are many issues this year that you will as a homeowner and as a member of our association will be asked to weigh in on. For once, the city is paying attention to our area, we must make sure not to squander these opportunities. Thanks for all your support and see you next week! Dominic Chavez |
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Advertise in the COVNA Newsletter Only $10.00/month. Reaches over 400 homes & Online at COVNA.org Email Doug Tabony at: tabonyproductions@austin.rr.com |
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BUMPS IN THE ROAD?
Those attending the meeting expressed high interest in the project, with many welcoming tools which would slow traffic and others vigorously opposed to the project. At the end of the meeting volunteers from different sections of the area signed up to serve on the Working Group. The Working Group will meet to consider the needs in the area and recommend placement of the various available traffic calming “tools.” After the Working Group makes recommendations and the city has finalized the proposal, the city will mail a ballot to residents in the whole area asking if they want the plan implemented. Sixty percent of those responding to the ballot must vote yes for the plan to be implemented. For clarification, this does not mean 60% of all the residents must agree; it means that 60% of those returning ballots must vote yes. There will be an up or down vote on the whole plan for the area, not for particular devices nor for different neighborhoods within the area. Most of the residents in the area recently received a survey from the city which asked questions designed to see which traffic calming devices residents would prefer. It is very important to return the survey. Information from the survey will be given to the Working Group so they can use the input in planning the project. The Working Group’s goal is to create a plan that will be acceptable to most of the residents, so input from the survey is extremely helpful. If a resident in Castlewood/Oak Valley is concerned about speeding on his/her street and wants the devices, please let the committee know. On the other hand, if you feel we do not have a problem that warrants action, or you are against particular traffic calming devices, you should communicate that now with the survey. Remember, the city has set up this process so that resident’s views will be incorporated into the plan. They want citizen input. If you have strong feelings on either side, please participate in the process by returning the survey. Claudia Anderson |
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SPEED LIMITS
When the speed limit sign appeared on my street, I was pleased. Then I went onto Davis Lane and saw the speed limit had been changed from 30 mph to 25 mph west of Leo. Here is the background. I contacted Austin's Public Works Department and asked why the speed limit was changed. The public works department person told me that the State of Texas had passed a law (HB 87) that states, ”The governing body of a municipality, for a highway or a part of a highway in an urban district in the municipality, may declare a lower speed limit of not less than 25 mph, if the governing body determines that the prima facie speed limit on the highway is unreasonable or unsafe.” In the past cities were limited to 30 mph. I thought that there may be some engineering problems or that there were too many people injured or killed on Davis Lane. The Austin Police Department reported 39 accidents on Davis Lane between Manchaca and 3500 Davis Lane (about half way between Brodie and MoPac) from 2005 to the present. Of these 21 occurred at the intersections at Brodie Lane and Manchaca Road. I would suspect that speed on Davis Lane had very little to do with them. Since the city had the power to lower the speed limits, they used it. No other reason.
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