HomeMy WebLinkAbout20230773 182 Excelsior Site Plan Public Comment (2)Dear Susan, December 2023
I am writing regarding the proposed development, “182 Excelsior Ave.”, at the corner of Excelsior Ave and Excelsior Springs Ave. I am currently on vacation out of town so am doing this
on my cell phone ( pardon errors) and am unable to attend the upcoming meeting.
I have a number of concerns about this plan - the biggest being the traffic flow at that corner and the amount of increased traffic on Excelsior Springs Ave
traffic on Excelsior Springs Ave has already been increasing
As a resident of Victoria Lane since 1996, I was thrilled when the Spring Run Trail was built. I walk it frequently and years ago would bring my dog along. In recent years, when bringing
my dog to the trail I have found it is nearly impossible to safely walk with a dog from Victoria Lane down the hill on Excelsior Springs Ave to the trail. I instead go “the long way”
around to East Ave to access the trail. When I walk The Spring Trail without the dog, I take Excelsior Springs Ave to the trail and that road has become worse and worse. There
is very little shoulder and no sidewalk or bike lane. When cars come I am forced to step off the road onto the rough pointy drainage rocks and poison ivy that line the side of the
road. The steep hill and curve make for a bad combination of cars driving much too fast and having a limited line of sight. In the winter it is a bigger problem as the hill and the
curve can be difficult to navigate ( I am a cautious driver and spun out into a snowbank across from the old bottling plant a few years ago ). Now, with more bikes on the road trying
to access the new bike trails on Excelsior Ave ( which are great) , the situation has become even more dangerous. I often walk in the neighborhood and cross Excelsior Springs Ave at
Victoria Lane. The traffic there has become quite heavy and already many drivers don’t stop at the 4 way stop sign. It is unfortunately a heavily used , fast road and is becoming increasingly
unsafe. Maybe adding bike lanes and lighting on Excelsior Springs Ave would enhance pedestrian and bicycle safety and slow down the drivers.
Concern about proposed driveway location on Excelsior Springs Ave
Regarding the driveways for the proposed project on Excelsior Springs Ave, in addition to the traffic concerns I have noted above,I anticipate that the traffic flow will often result
in a gridlock situation.
Currently, there is often a line of cars waiting at the intersection at the stop sign on Excelsior Springs Ave (heading north) where it intersects with Excelsior Ave.
as traffic increases on Excelsior Ave as is expected with the ongoing planned development along that corridor , the number of cars stopped on Excelsior Springs Ave waiting for a pause
in traffic to turn onto Excelsior Ave , will increase.
those stopped cars will be blocking the entrance to the proposed development. This will cause a backup as cars attempting to get into the driveway of the new development turn from
Excelsior Ave, onto Excelsior Springs Ave (heading south), then find they are unable to make the quick left turn into the proposed development driveway. As those cars attempting to
enter the driveway will have to stop quickly due to the blocked access, it seems as though a messy and dangerous traffic situation will often occur.
If the driveways could be moved to the other side of the property, ideally across from Veteran’s Way, it seems that at least some of the traffic pressure would be lessened
Relocation of the yellow house and barn
I believe I heard that the developer received permission for additional units as a bonus for restoring the yellow house and barn. It surprised me to see that the yellow house and barn
are going to be moved. How likely is it that moving such old, large structures will be successful ? If one or both structures fall apart, is the developer permitted to just build new
structures instead ?
Thanks for reading this and forwarding along to the planning board members. I know serving as a volunteer on the planning board is a huge commitment. I appreciate the work everyone
is doing.
Please let me know that this was received. Thx !
Sincerely,
Laurie Murphy
18 Victoria Lane
Saratoga Springs
518 423 5056