Cost of proposed Sixth Avenue streetscape plan continues to rise

Jun. 29—The cost of the proposed Sixth Avenue streetscape is likely up to an estimated $10 million city officials said Tuesday as residents gave their opinions on blocking left turns from their streets, Gordon Drive speeding and the impact of the plan on the busy highway's traffic.

The original estimate was $5 million to $6 million and then it rose to roughly $8 million as the consultant, Volkert Inc., began working on the plan to beautify the northern end of Sixth Avenue in Decatur.

City Director of Development Dane Shaw said Tuesday at a public meeting on Volkert's proposed plan at Turner-Surles Community Center that inflationary supply chain issues will likely push the project up to about $10 million.

Council President Jacob Ladner and Councilman Carlton McMasters said they aren't surprised the estimated cost is that high.

"In my mind, I thought it would probably be in that range," Ladner said.

The project encompasses a 1-mile area of Sixth Avenue between Prospect Drive Southeast and the Tennessee River bridges. It would add wider walkways, turn portions of the turn lane into medians with flower beds and block some roads from turning left onto Sixth Avenue.

Mark McAdams, Volkert project manager, said they didn't make many changes since the original rough plan was presented at a Feb. 8, 2021, work session.

"The gist of the project is beautification, access management, median separation and improving traffic flow," McAdams said.

Jackson Street resident Mike Rogers said he "really likes most of the streetscape plan, especially because it makes it feel like downtown Birmingham, where they've really done a great job of improving."

Billy Smith, of Austinville Road Southwest, said he attended the meeting because he wanted to tell someone his opinion of the plan, not just to get information.

"I thought we'd get to say what we want to say about the plan since they're using our money," Smith said. "But it looks like everything is cut and dried. This is a waste of time."

Smith said he would rather spend the money on cleaning up the city than on the proposed streetscape.

"Look at Spring Avenue, ride down Cedar Street, we need to clean every street in Decatur," Smith said.

Ladner said anyone in the public is free to provide input by speaking to the mayor or City Council members or speaking at the weekly council meetings that are held every Monday, except on holidays.

Ladner said they hope to give final approval of the project early next year, and McAdams and Shaw said they hope to start the project, if approved, in spring 2023.

The part that concerned many of the roughly 75 people in attendance, most of whom were from the Old Decatur and Albany historic districts that would be impacted the most, was the impact on traffic.

The biggest concern is the proposal to removal three traffic signals. The traffic signals would be removed and a barrier installed in the center lane of Sixth Avenue so drivers will not be able to turn left from Johnston, Jackson and Sherman streets onto Sixth.

McAdams said the plan proposes replacing the traffic signals along Eighth Street with all-way traffic stops.

Smith, who lives on the corner of Eighth Street and Johnston, said his concern is the amount of traffic this plan will direct down Eighth.

"It's already bad because nobody stops at the stop signs," Smith said. "And now people on Jackson Street will all have to go to Eighth."

McAdams said the one major change in the plan from earlier proposals is Prospect and Gordon drives will remain two-way roads, at the request of the city.

McAdams said the plan also proposes "adding about 6 feet to widen the east side of Gordon at the Sixth Avenue intersection." This would make the east side of Gordon mirror the west side of the intersection, he added.

"Widening the intersection won't hurt the park," McAdams said.

Margaret Wenzler, who lives on Somerville Road Southeast across from Delano Park, said her concern is the speeding on Gordon Drive, especially from people going to and from Decatur Morgan Hospital and Decatur High School. She said Gordon also has a problem with 18-wheelers going to General Electric, a violation of the city's truck route ordinance.

"Gordon Drive is a race track," Wenzler said. "We've had four wrecks in the past month, with people running through the (Delano) Rose Garden and tearing up trees."

McAdams said the plan is to add a traffic stop at 10th Avenue and Gordon, but Wenzler said she's not even sure this will help because people will still run the stop signs.

Wenzler said she would like to see the speeds limit lowered from 30 to 15 mph, just like it is on Prospect near Decatur Middle School.

A major part of the plan is moving the utilities underground where possible. McAdams said they met with Decatur Utilities and are working to meet with AT&T and the cable companies.

"Some of the electric lines will be quite costly to place underground because of the type of electric lines they are," McAdams said. "The overall cost of the project will dictate what we can do."

DU General Manager Ray Hardin said it will be several months before DU is finished preparing its portion of the plan.

McAdams said the plan continues to include a brick treatment between the sidewalk and curb where possible along Sixth Avenue. A brick sign at Lee Street Northeast, the safety of which was questioned by at least one councilman at the 2021 meeting, is still in the plan, but the details on the appearance and placement still must be decided.

The City Council hired Birmingham-based Volkert last year for $792,000 to do the engineering and design for the Streetscape project. Volkert previously received $100,000 for developing the preliminary plan. A grant from ALDOT paid $80,000 of that plan's cost.

The Sixth Avenue streetscape idea came out of a Decatur-Morgan County Chamber of Commerce committee formed to find ways to boost residential growth since the city had not grown in two decades.

The need to beautify this entrance into the city after crossing the Tennessee River was one of the top suggestions by city residents who participated in the creation of the One Decatur comprehensive plan in 2018.

— bayne.hughes@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2432. Twitter @DD_BayneHughes.