TRAVERSE CITY -- John Snodgrass is worried a new public parking deck in Old Town and more jobs at Hagerty Insurance Agency will increase traffic in his neighborhood.
That's why he believes now is the perfect time to get moving on a long-awaited new road along the west side of Boardman Lake.
"Some would argue if Hagerty adds another 200 to 300 jobs, that's just going to be more traffic up and down Cass and Union," Snodgrass said. "Our goal has been, since our neighborhood organized 10 years ago, to remove some of the cars out of our neighborhood."
Traverse City engineer Tim Lodge on Monday gave city commissioners an update on the proposed road called Boardman Lake Avenue.
It would begin at Eighth Street and run south along the railroad corridor before merging into Cass Street near the Traverse City Golf and Country Club.
Local officials worked on the project for years, but most progress has been stalled until they can obtain a right-of-way along the railroad corridor from the Michigan Department of Transportation.
It'll likely take until sometime next year before all the steps are finalized to sell the property, said Matt DeLong, real estate administrator for MDOT.
Meanwhile, officials are moving ahead on plans for a publicly funded parking structure in Old Town. The development agreement requires Hagerty to construct an additional building in its River's Edge complex and create at least 100 new jobs. Hagerty expects 360 retained and 226 new jobs.
That job creation might help attract grants to fund the new road, Lodge said.
The first phase for a route between Eighth Street to 14th Street would be a two-lane, 25-mph avenue with "significant pedestrian crossings," Lodge said.
A 2004 estimate set the price for that initial section at $1.25 million, including money for right-of-way acquisition, but not for environmental remediation. In 2000, the entire road was projected at $5.4 million, not including property costs.
The city has allocated more than $580,000 toward the project, and there's also anticipated brownfield redevelopment funds.
But Bonnie Willings contends the road isn't worth the money.
She lives at Lake Ridge Condominiums off 14th Street on Boardman Lake.
"I don't think it would help the traffic and I think it would jeopardize the neighborhood by adding a third busy street," she said.
City Commissioner Jim Carruthers said he's on the fence about the road.
"I'm not sure if it's going to relieve traffic congestion or if it's just going to move congestion to another part of town," he said.
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