Public Comment

Transcript (~10 min @ 2:25)

Speakers identified by voice; unnamed voices are numbered within this recording. Auto-caption text — verify against the video.

▶ 2:24 Peter D. Mortimer: public here who are going to come forward and make some public comment thank you you're welcome

▶ 2:35 Speaker 5: do i have permission to give to the all of them present this evening some paper we have put

▶ 2:43 Speaker 6: together about the roundabout down green street and high street if no alderman objects it will

▶ 2:45 Peter D. Mortimer: be allowed seeing no objection please proceed

▶ 3:30 Peter D. Mortimer: excuse me ma'am right now the people at home cannot hear you so thank you for

▶ 3:38 Peter D. Mortimer: pushing that out but please go to the chair and the microphone and then state your name and address for the record and then please proceed you there will be

▶ 3:50 Speaker 5: another public hearing on this I understand yes we're here because we think there's an opportunity to keep the island it's good for the neighborhood

▶ 4:00 Speaker 5: it's been there as long as we've all been here the thing we want to do is

▶ 4:06 Speaker 5: slow down the traffic that's our goal we all know it's too busy there we want to

▶ 4:16 Speaker 5: have safe crossing areas we would like to keep the Bowman Square Island and the green space and the War Memorial and we want to keep our on street pocket that's

▶ 4:26 Speaker 5: very important so how can we slow down the traffic so on the picture you will see there used to be a flashing light as you came from Franklin Square toward the island there was a flashing light with a cover on it showed everyone to slow down we should have one on each corner that used to be there when the road was done done over they took it down by mistake then there's stop signs we have two stop

▶ 4:58 Speaker 5: signs on the island they're very good stopping is important it slows down traffic they need to have a very gentle light around them to draw our attention now a crosswalk right now across from the Green Street Baptist Church there is

▶ 5:19 Speaker 5: crosswalk that has no lights all it has is a sign that needs to have the push-button lights that will slow people down on Howell Street there's a sign that says how fast you're going it has been determined by the traffic

▶ 5:34 Speaker 5: Commission but that sign makes that how fast you're going makes people slow down we need another one on Green Street as you leave Franklin Square people come down Franklin Street or from Main Street and they come around that bend and they just pick right up we need one right there how fast you're going so we need a crosswalk there with lights the crosswalks already there and how fast you're going now they see the flashing light on the island that tells them to

▶ 6:10 Speaker 5: slow down now how to get across the street my grandkids live on clifford

▶ 6:16 Speaker 5: street they come across that island every day going to and from the middle school we need cross lights on each end of the island there's a stop sign have a crosswalk there cross the island there's another stop sign have a crosswalk there people cross with that flash that new light system we have for crossing the street and the stop sign we get everyone across the street

▶ 6:45 Speaker 5: i think that's it that's our idea thank you very much go ahead sir no that's that's all

▶ 6:55 Speaker 7: we just listen my husband jerry will have another point of view yeah as my point of view here is that as a resident in that area for 58 years uh we've been in business also there for 43 years

▶ 7:08 Speaker 7: I think that this could be a bad decision for the whole area, residential area, having this roundabout. We're going to be losing nine spaces, which is residence and business. Since the last four years, we've added 12 new resident units in that area. None of these places have guest parking. So I don't know where the people are going to park when they come to visit. The church has no parking, which is the Green Baptist Church, and they need most more parking as they can get in that area and also the businesses

▶ 7:48 Speaker 7: now i understand the traffic commission has worked hard on this i understand that they've come up with some good ideas but i think the roundabout in this such a a small area is really cramping something that really going to put a lot of people having to be aware what's actually going on If you look at the pictures of the original roundabout, there's crosswalks going through the roundabout. Now it's going to be busy enough trying to figure out how they're turning, where they're going, and having crosswalks in there also, and if I look at it, I don't know what the actual distance is so that you can visually see crosswalks, which is a lot of curves coming into that roundabout and i really think that having crosswalks in there is going to be very

▶ 8:48 Speaker 7: dangerous the other thing is is that that area right now the triangle that can do snow plowing with the triangle with the roundabout in there they're going to have to remove the snow there's just no place to put it either that or going to end up in everybody's front yard the uh

▶ 9:08 Speaker 7: the triangle adds a lot of had some green space people use it with their dogs or whatever they kind of just use it it's been here a long time I've seen a lot of different accidents there but nothing really serious it's no different in vaccines I hear all over the city these are these small fender benders the amount of traffic is there it's amazing they get by there whatnot but I think with the proper lighting and other things of work there's a lot of truck

▶ 9:43 Speaker 7: traffic in that road and going around that roundabout with trucks is going to really be a challenge the other thing is

▶ 9:53 Speaker 7: when the plenty of people don't realize that right now with the island there when they go around the traffic the lights in there from those cars and stuff do not go into their room, into their houses and the windows. With that roundabout there, which is just going to be a slab of cement and tar, when eight

▶ 10:12 Speaker 7: people go around that roundabout, the lights are going to go right through all through their windows. I don't think they even understand that, and that's going to be very annoying. I don't think they're going to be very happy with it. I think that this can be done with no added expense to what the money has been appropriated for this but i do understand i think that there's not enough money to do what they want to do now but i'm pretty sure the money they have they could do the improvements i understand the traffic commission worked on this very thoroughly i went to their meetings i they had another alternative which i didn't think was going to work they wanted to put stop signs everywhere it didn't seem like it would work because traffic was sat backing up it is a very busy area I've seen traffic gone in there probably five times what

▶ 11:10 Speaker 7: it was when I first moved in so anyways we just wanted to let you people know that we think that this could be a better alternative thank you very much

▶ 11:20 Peter D. Mortimer: sir thank you madam clerk of committees have the public commentators giving you their name and address would you please both state your name and address for the

▶ 11:31 Speaker 5: record please okay would you say it out loud oh sure I'm Winnie like the poo canton c-a-n-t-i-n 164 Green Street Melrose the girl that has the health

▶ 11:45 Speaker 7: food store and this is your husband Jerry yes my name's rod and I live at 164 Green Street also just one other old one turn it away we're talking about light poles we're moving light poles and I don't know how many you're gonna pose you're going to have to put in there but people are not going to be very happy having new light poles in front of their yard and that's what's going to be because there's a way those light

▶ 12:10 Speaker 3: poles are set up you're going to at least put four in here thank you sir yep and i like to say green

▶ 12:14 Peter D. Mortimer: green street natural food store is a great place i've been going there since i was a little kid and it's it's excellent it's an excellent uh business here in melrose

▶ 12:23 Speaker 5: thank you very much thank you very much sir a lot of nice people come there very pleasant yes

▶ 12:30 Peter D. Mortimer: indeed thank you thank you ladies and gentlemen is there a motion to close public comment please

▶ 12:35 Peter D. Mortimer: motion to close public comments second alderman boyce ellis made a motion to close public comment duly seconded by alderman forbes all in favor please say aye aye any opposed hearing none