JANUARY 15, 2009 ISSUE
Blowing Rock Council Approves Overall Streetscape Plan Concept
Plan Includes Improvements to Sidewalks, Crossings, Landscaping
The Blowing Rock Streetscape Plan will make improvements to address unsightly utility lines, sidewalks, crosswalks and signs as well as improve safety in downtown Blowing Rock.
The Blowing Rock Town Council on Tuesday unanimously approved an overall concept for the Main Street Streetscape Plan, a project of improvements to sidewalks, crosswalks, signage, utilities, landscaping and other street features along Main Street in downtown Blowing Rock.
Town engineer Doug Chapman of McGill Associates presented PowerPoint slides of areas that need to be improved, suggested project phases, examples of streetscape elements from other towns and visualizations of what downtown would look like with various improvements at the council’s monthly meeting Tuesday evening.
The project will focus on the stretch of Main Street from St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church to the intersection with U.S. 221. The project will proceed in six phases, or sections, in order of greatest need, Chapman said.
Phase 1 will address the area on the west side of Main Street around Rumple Memorial Presbyterian Church. Town Manager Scott Hildebran said that staff would like to see Phase 1 completed in time for the 2009 summer tourist season.
Phase 2 will include improvements to the area around Memorial Park and the Sunset Drive intersection. Phase 3 will improve the east side of Main Street from St. Mary of the Hills to Morris Street, and Phase 4 will stretch from Morris Street to Sunset Drive. Phase 5 continues from Sunset Drive to U.S. 221 on the east side, and Phase 6 stretches from U.S. 221 to Town Hall on the west side.
The Streetscape Plan calls for reducing the visibility of utility lines, either by burying them or moving them behind buildings. The council voted to create a plan for moving utility lines behind buildings as part of its motion of approval for the Streetscape Plan.
The plan recommends installing pavers at pedestrian crosswalks and to fill in earthen spaces between curbs and sidewalks. But Chapman cautioned that snowplows would have to be extra careful when scraping the road over pavers, and one woman attending the meeting expressed concern that pedestrians could trip over pavers that come loose.
Chapman presented a couple of different options for the stoplights at the intersection of Main Street and Sunset Drive. One option is the installation of one large pole with an arm that swings out diagonally across the intersection. The other option is to install smaller poles with smaller arms at three corners of the intersection. The council and meeting attendees seemed to think the larger pole was too “commercial” and expressed preference for the smaller poles. The stoplight poles will also have pedestrian crossing lights.
The overall concept plan is subject to approval by the N.C. Department of Transportation. After DOT approval, the Blowing Rock Advisory Committee will discuss specific details such as which trees to plant, whether to use pavers and which ones to install, benches, trash cans and signage.
Hildebran said the town has enough money set aside from sidewalk maintenance funds to pay for Phase 1. The rest of the phases will be funded through future town budgets.
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