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I
THE GATHERING STORM
The second tornado to hit Athens came down Prince Avenue just
like the first I was desperately trying to get home, and as I raced
out Prince, ahead of me I saw through the rainy dark an unbeliev
able sight all four lanes of Prince filled with the headlights of cars
fleeing toward me.
That image comes back into my mind as I contemplate the new
storm building out beyond where Prince Avenue becomes Jefferson
Road. Ride out and see for yourself the housing developments
building or already in place along that road rapidly widening to four
lanes all the way to Jackson County. Come back in to where
Jefferson Road becomes Prince Avenue and continue on to town.
Look how busy Prince is, and consider all the traffic soon to be gen
erated by the rampant development and the four-lane road. Pause at
Milledge Avenue and try to figure how much of the traffic will head
that way and how much will flow on down Prince toward downtown,
squeezing through the narrow spot at The Grit
That Prince/ Milledge intersection is a significant point because
that's the line of Georgia Department of Transportation control
Beyond Milledge toward downtown, Prince Avenue is a local street
In the other direction, it is a st'te highway, as is Milledge. Athens-
Clarke County has the option of taking over control and responsi
bility on Milledge and on Prince. At the present rate of discussion,
it appears that our mayor and commission do not want to assume
the expense of taking back those two streets from GDOT, especially
since there's no demand for it
If people would look over their shoulders at the traffic tsunami
heading our way, we might grab any straw that would help us stem
that tide. f
If you haven't already seen it take a look at the column by
Tony Eubanks in the Saturday, May 28 Athens Banner-Herald at
http://onlineathens.com/stories/052805/opi_20050528019.shtml
or find it in your recycling bin or canary cage. Tony chairs the
Historic Boulevard
Neighborhood Association
and is instrumental in the
process called Community
Approach to Ptanning
Prince Avenue. His piece
outtines the effects of
GDOTs cars-first policies on
the streets they control,
making beautification and traffic calming difficult if not impossible.
Reading what Tony has to say will help you understand that GDOT
will never be much of a partner in helping us figure out how to slow
the onslaught of automobiles, since they're behind them, pushing.
This is all the more reason why we need to prod our mayor and
commission to take control of Prince and Milledge. Only by doing so
can we control what happens to those streets, and by extension, to
our town. '
This is a Ust-ditch effort Athens is already overrun by fast
traffic, with more, fester traffic just up the road, coming at us. That
is exactly what the Georgia Department of Transportation wants, and
if you live up toward Jefferson, it's what you want But if you live
in Athens, you know how crowded we already are, and you know
turning Jefferson Road into an expressway is aiming a shotgun at
the heart of our city.
In a conversation recently, a local banker remarked that in the
long run, Athens will be the only town to keep its identity as the
rest of our area succumbs to the inevitable outflow of Atlanta. Only
Athens, according to the banker, has the zoning in place to with
stand the development that is submerging Barrow County and
Oconee County and is already creeping into Madison County.
Even our zoning may not save us, though. We thought the
greenbelt was a reality, but encroachments like the gigantic project
off Jefferson River Road continue to happen, feeding cars toward
downtown.
Thafs why our local transportation policy is such an integral
determinant in how we grow. We can't save Athens from going under
if we open the sluice gates to fast traffic instead of slowing it to
manageable volumes.
We do not owe Jackson Countians a fast track to town. We owe
our own citizens a livable community. Gaining control of our streets
is just the first step toward figuring out how to keep our city from
being further inundated. We can't keep them out and we don't want
to. We just want them here on our terms. If it takes three-laning
Prince Avenue to stow the tide, to a manageable flow, we may have
to do that Better bus service, park and ride tots, bicycle lanes—
hell, speed bumps and traffic circles—we've got to consider all the
alternatives to keep from letting this tidal wave of traffic further
overwhelm us. •
This traffic storm is building. Like a tornado it can tear our town
apart* unlike a tornado it can be managed, but only if we take back
our streets.
All the more reason why we
need to prod our mayor and
commission to take control
of Prince and Milledge.
Pete MeCommorts Editor and Publisher
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LETTERS 4
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