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Just as sure
I know some people think they know the answers to the Diley Road widening. However the ODOT meeting was just to get public input.
Granted much of the decision to widen and plan for five lanes is cast in stone. However other decisions that effect the citizens still have yet to be decided. Trees in the center of the road have not been decided yet. If the citizens want this feature then they should attend the city council meetings and probably the service committee. I think the next meeting is either next Thursday or the week after.
Anyway if you want something you need to let these officals know what you want.
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The real Diley Road
Dear Picktown 03,
By now you?’ve had some time to continue your pursuits and research on the Diley Road widening and improvements issue. So let?’s review what you should have been able to glean.
First, both the City and the mutual Violet Township / Canal Winchester portions of Diley road improvements where in development over two years ago. Face the facts that anytime these entities give a cost$ figure to the newspapers you are a day late on impacting the decisions. For the most part newspapers really only report what has already happened ?– right! They had already been analysis and engineering with costs reported as a result of these efforts.
So what does the $400K and $2.8 million efforts produce? Well in the case of the joint Township / Village improvements with boulevard style street improvements there will be a vastly improved opportunity to realize the intent of private ?– public partnerships within the boundaries of the CEDA area. In most areas the target for a successful private - public partnership is viewed as a situation where for ever dollar of public (i.e. tax dollars from the citizens) the return if improved taxable income from the private sector is 4 times that value. That 4 times value will stay in the area and be shared by the Village and Township. That?’s defined by the CEDA agreement and will be south of Busey Road and within the boundaries of the Canal Winchester School District. Roughly the first mile of roadway coming off Route 33 traveling north. Inclusive in the area are current light manufacturing facilities, warehousing, service orientated companies, and talks of possible future medical facilities.
As one travels north of Busey Road, into the $2.8 million dollar effort, the road improvements will be considerably different and so will the results. We?’ll step into the realm of developer heaven. A couple of miles of 5 lane roadway frequently known as 2 lanes one direction, two lanes the other direction, and a suicide lane in the middle. Why that term? It?’s simple, this type of roadway is filled with head on collisions and side swipe accidents as vehicles try to cross the multiple lane configuration.
Now why did I refer to this as developer heaven? Well that too is simple. Just look at the information on this website and you?’ll see all those wonderful BIA types that are suing the City of Pickerington residents for the loss of their poor property rights. Now consider how many of those same developers have subdivision plans underway along Diley Road.
These same Dublin, Columbus, etc. folks that can?’t contribute more toward this community but can afford to sue it.
These same folks that this site has documented as to quarterly profits earnings.
These same folks that, should they loose one inch of dirt to the road widening, stand to get a sizable increased valuation on the eminent domain acquisition of that inch of dirt than their farmer purchased cost basis
.
That?’s just the tip of their profits from the largess of the public investment. They get to promote the ease of commute, paid for by City of Pickerington taxpayers, while they build out both sides of Diley Road?’s Pickerington School District area.
By Gary Wright
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Diley Road (continued)
Of course it?’s now just tradition that someone jumps in here and screams that it?’s the Township or Columbus residents fault. Well scream away, yet all of the PLSD residents will share in the joy of the educational costs of these developments progeny. Not the private enterprises that exit with their earnings.
And yes, there will be a multiple factor improved land valuation, however it will come with an ever increasing factor of costs to support that is borne by all.
Does anyone want to guess the date that these new residents will be screaming for traffic lights ( and a lot of them along all of Diley Road ) to safely traverse this stretch of newer commuterville?
Does anyone want to predict the time of the PLSD Board meeting that parents protest the wicked traffic to and from the neighboring school as they clearly live in eye shot (much closer than one mile) but want bussing for safety?
So who will pay for the lights, the busses, the drivers, the increased accidents, etc.?
How much additional debt will City residents ?“absorb?” for the developer road access improvements? Give us the full, end of payment, pay off (with interest calculated) figures.
Just remember these ( and more issues ) when the second round of the BIA legal actions continue for the fight to rule here.
By Gary Wright
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Money all Gone!!
Gary (not related to Bill) is right on a number of issues. The Diley road widening project was started last week. The federal program was started at least five years ago and it is close enough to being approved that the City of Pickerington has committed millions toward this project.
This commitment by the city will push it to the very limits of its borrowing power allowed under Ohio Law. There is a 10 mill limit against its real estate property evaluation that is being threatened with this project. In fact part of the project is being financed with a TIF up around the Discount Drug Mart and that northern end of Diley Road. This TIF borrowing is outside that 10 mill limit. Despite the fact that if commercial property does not develop the debt service on these TIF loans comes out of the Pickerington General Fund.
I believe the city has been mismanaged for so long now that the new city government will need to stick to its guns in slowing the residential growth and promote economic growth and this Diley Road project will help open up some areas that may be developed commercially in the future.
The problem now faced by the city residents is how pretty do you want the new Diley road to be? If Picktown03 wants a tree lined boulevard then that may require additional taxes. If we worry our selves to death about safety then that will require more taxes and more money coming from either a bond issue levied against your homes or an income tax increase. Without a strong residential growth rate then we are faced with a borrowing limit.
I think what we will all find here is a staged project. The Ohio Department of Transportation will acquire the right of ways and once that is done the City can do the improvements later. I think it is important to provide sidewalks on these new roads.
I even heard a request for a gate on the sidewalk for the rail line. I think the area parents need to use a little common sense and take on some of the responsibility for their own children's safety. The fact that cars will be coming down this road at 45 MPH in some places doesn't mean the road will be unsafe because a pedestrian is on the sidewalk. The fact that we will have less parents driving because the children can walk will help the over all congestion in the school areas. As we all have read here in central Ohio sometimes parents or grandparents picking up children at school have caused accidents right on the school grounds.
The point here is that nothing will be fail safe.
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