Newspaper Page Text
I
SOON
IT’S A FAIR COMPROMISE..
DEMOCRATS PROMISE NOT
TO VOTE AND REPUBLICANS
PROMISE NOT TO TAKE AWAY
THEIR RIGHT TO VOTE.
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Artist, musician, frierd-about-town Bo Tompkins (0 died recently and was memorialised by family and friends May 26, and by his
friend Chris Cogan (r) below.
everywhere are wedded to their automobiles, and
divorce is unlikely," went another comment "The
Madison/ Athens Clarke County area is becoming
increasingly attractive to retirees, and they, for
the most part do not choose bicycles as their
mode of transportation. A fast-growing Hispanic
community also does not choose the bicycle."
'Once the College Station Road bridge is com
pleted, this will become a major bike route," pre
dicted another. "It will undoubtedly be faster to
get to class on a bicycle than in a car (when
parking and walking time is included).'
Several comments asked for improvements to
be made sooner rather than later to the Jennings
Mill Road Intersection with Atlanta Highway.
"(It) is like a shooting gallery," said one citizen.
"This intersection should have been fixed years
ago." Others called it 'perilous' and "one of the
most confusing and dangerous intersections in
the city."
"It is common to see numerous cars lined up
awaiting the chance to enter Atlanta Highway,"
said a resident. "Simultaneously there will be cars
making U-turns in BOTH directions, crossing both
lanes of Atlanta Highway, and crossing multiple
lanes of traffic to get to the ramps for loop 10.
Near-miss situations are common... This can't
wait three more years."
Several citizens thought more money should go
to buses. "If the bus had the funding to run every
15 minutes, and late into the night, it would
make an enormous difference in this community,'
said one. [An earlier statement on these pages
that ACCs buses don't run 'at all' on weekends
was in error. Many local routes do operate on
Saturdays.]
Several comments supported a proposed
bypass around downtown WatkinsviUe. A business
owner wrote that "the volume of logging, live
stock other commercial tractor-trailer vehicles is
overwhelming, and is causing considerable disrup
tion to the normal flow of pedestrian and shop
ping traffic"
Another wrote: 'Massive road projects
advanced by Oconee County and MAC0RT5 simply
dump into WatkinsviUe, yet the city has no direct
representation on MAC0RT5.'
Some comments suggested that the proposals
to four-lane Macon Highway, Simonton Bridge
Road or Lexington Road (out to Crawford) are
unnecessary. "These roads lead in and out of
Athens and will encourage increased speeds, while
allowing for and encouraging people to work in
town and live in surrounding counties. While
decreasing our tax revenues, we will be increasing
traffic" and other problems, one citizen said.
'A four-lane divided highway creates a virtual
wall within a community that can only be realisti
cally navigated by car," said a comment on a
from the Tallassee Road proposal
Planning Commissioner Karen Middendorf
thought any additional river crossings needed to
be farther out—in Jackson county.
However, that presents bureaucratic difficul
ties, since the ACC government has no official role
in Jackson County decisions. Of the five counties
that directly border Athens-Clarke County, only
two—Oconee and Madison—belong to MAC0RT5.
But that could change, ACC Transportation
Planner Sheny Moore told Flagpole. Madison
County joined MACORTS only recently, and the
other counties could too, based on census data.
They are presently considered rjral and operate
independently.
Still in the MACORTS long-range plan is a $15
million road that would link US 441 North with US
29 North. If built as initially mapped, it would
also cut across the existing Greenway trail But
that plan raised strenuous objections from
Greenway advocates within the ACC government,
and in a compromise, the line was taken off the
map, leaving the connector's specific route to be
decided later. According to Moore, by that time
it's possible that Jackson County will have joined
MACORTS.
A month-long public comment period has pro
duced about 180 comments from citizens on pro
posed MACORTS projects.
Mayor Heidi Davison's proposal for a MAC0RT5-
funded bike lane project brought forth many posi
tive responses (especially for bike lanes on College
Station Road) and some negative ones. Most ACC
bike lanes to date have been local projects, not
funded through MACORTS.
"The bike lanes that already exist in Athens are
scattered and disconnected, and therefore go
largely unused. It is important that we finish
these proposed projects," one citizen wrote.
"I am a conservationist and am a preserva
tionist but this bike lane business in Athens has
got to cease," said another. "They are crowding
what is already a congested area with cars on
narrow roads... '
"I once lived in a place where I did not need a
car," wrote another, 'and I felt completely liber
ated. I envision a day when I will be able to enjoy
everything Athens has to offer, without needing a
car to get there."
"The overwhelming majority of Americans
SEARCH AND DESTROV
by Ted Rail
Build It?
Roads Vs. Greenspace
Two dozen citizens argued before the ACC
Planning Commission against proposed road links
they said would intrude into the county's "green-
belt." One road would bridge Sandy Creek (and the
county's North Oconee River Greenway hiking
trail) to connect Commerce Road with Nowhere
Road. The other would bridge the Middle Oconee
River to connect Cleveland Road (off Atlanta
Highway) with Tallassee Road. County transporta
tion planners and engineers proposed the new
links to help relieve traffic congestion on existing
roads (like the bypass) and to facilitate access by
emergency vehicles.
After hearing from citizens, the ACC Planning
Commission voted not to recommend the two
links to ACC Commissioners. However, the
greenway trail is still threatened by a similar pro
posal in the multi-county Madison, Athens-Clarke,
Oconee Regional Transportation Study (MACORTS)
transportation plan.
Nearby residents and others told the planning
commission that the undeveloped 'greenbelt"
would be compromised.
"We already go under one bridge, and we don't
want to go under another one,' said greenway
pioneer Walt Cook about the hiking trail that
bears his name. County planners contended that
the connecting roads wil 1 be needed if the areas
become developed, and that if they aren't planned
in advance, the roads will be much harder to build
when they are needed. But some residents saw
that as a 'chicken-or-egg" argument, and said the
roads would encourage development which might
not otherwise occur.
"Whichever comes first—roads or develop
ment—if both are bad ideas, what difference does
it maker asked Community Tree Council President
David Kidd.
'A line drawn on a map is a very strong non
verbal communication to developers," said Nancy
Hunter. "There's a noticeable absence of anyone
saying anything about protecting our greenspace."
Several speakers pointed out that an existing
road already crosses the river two miles upstream
WatkinsviUe project "Widening the road to four
lanes is a reward to those who ignore speed
limits; perhaps greater law enforcement is a better
use of resources... A better configuration for
[Simonton Bridge Road] would be widening to two
standard travel lanes, with a center turn lane pro
vided over some portions as required." The
MACORTS plan for Simonton Bridge Road includes
four-foot bike lanes.
And Lexington Road "is a rural and scenic
route leading to a rural county with many historic
sites dating to late 1780s-early 1800s," said
another comment "The historic Bartram Trail and
historic Cherokee Comer are within this planned
widening '
John Hula
John Huie writes about local government for
Flagpole.
Bo Is
i Poem
Bo is smiling. Bo is kindness. Bo is leading me
barefoot through snake grass. Bo is fearless. Bo is
walking around the comer with a backpack fuU of
beer. Bo shares. Bo plays drums from all cultures
simultaneously. Bo can find the most beautiful
piece of wood. Bo jumps in the cold, deep spring
on a sunny February afternoon. Bo has left his
hiking boots in the living room. Bo despises cor
rupt government Bo has the strength of 10 men.
Bo is sparkling. Bo is honest Bo escaped death.
Bo is out in the garden sunshine, laughing. Bo is
so, so sweet Bo speaks his own language, and it
makes perfect sense. Bo makes a blade of grass
his instrument Bo is generous. Bo is walking 15
miles home in the rain. Bo never complains. Bo is
working on Sunday, but not because he has to. Bo
is making pesto. Bo is hiding little bags of clothes
in the house. Bo never gets cold. Bo is drinking a
glass of thick, green algae. Bo plays drums with
giant Terminator sunglasses. Bo moves spiders to
a safer home. Bo is wearing shorts in 30-degree
weather. Bo has a walk. Bo is my brother. Bo's
words are right on. Bo tripped on an alligator on
Cumberland Island. Bo laughs at fireworks. Bo
lakes the time to admire this evening's sunset
Chris Cogan
Chris Cogan is a local musician who was a dose
friend and collaborator with the late Bo Tompkins
for many years.
6 FLAGPOLE.COM • JUNE 8, 2005
SlkM-C