About 60 people or so were in attendance tonight, a nice crowd. We were seated at round tables with about eight people per table. Part of tonight's meeting involved exercises. No, we were not doing pull-ups and crunches, but rather Montessori School type exercises where the folks at the table worked together. Our exercises were to plan the future of Dunwoody land use, plotting future use with colored round stickers. Not quite like playing The Sims video game, but it was fun pretending to be a Master Planner for an evening. If I were running the show tonight I'd have brought Lincoln Logs and Lego products.
Sustainable Pattie would have gotten this set: Dunwoody Land Use 1
ScottP: Dunwoody 3
Lucky for me I was at a table full of people who are all smart and really involved in the community. I'm not going to name-drop but the folks I had the privilege of sitting with are some heavy-hitters in the community.
Tonight' s meeting was about parks, sidewalks, and bike lanes. They may as well of thrown in chocolate and cotton candy as discussion points as well as everyone seemed to be on the same page tonight. Everyone at the meeting wants parks, bike lanes, and sidewalks. We also discussed locations for City Hall and the police station(s).
Police Department
First we'll review the police department. Me, I think the police chief needs to have some input here. Although I did not speak to the chief, I polled all the officers and they all agree the police station should be right next to Dunkin' Donuts. Not sure why, but that's what they told me.
The big question is do we want to continue to rent or do we buy a building or build a new one for use by the police department? Some folks tonight suggested Dunwoody Village for the police department. I disagree. I don't want the hub of our city to host a parking lot of police cars. Nor do I think the police department needs to be in a high profile location like it needs to be in an inner city. Big cities like Atlanta put mini precincts all over the place in an attempt to build community relations and to be near the 'action'. That is not needed here. Based on the police logs I've seen, most activity is around the mall or over near Peachtree Industrial. Someone at my table suggested the area near the old hospital as a potential site based on lower property values and it being a central location. I think she (LD) is right. I do not think we need mini precincts anywhere. No sense in spending money for two operations when it seems that everything is going well now with one central location.
City Hall
At first I wanted City Hall in Dunwoody Village, now I am not sure. I've been down to the current location a few times for meetings and it wasn't too bad in regards to traffic. Plus, I really like driving by and seeing the architecture of that new McDonald's by the mall. That is one fine looking McDonald's! And since I boycott Perimeter Mall due to their valet parking scam that took away every spot near the restaurants, I don't get down that way often.
Of course no one can safely ride their bike or walk to City Hall, so that is a downside to the current location. Not that I can safely walk or ride a bike to Dunwoody Village currently. Is our City Hall to be a gathering place for the community? Would local groups (Dun Woman's Club, Dun Pres Trust, Boy Scouts, etc) use City Hall for meetings if it were closer to the homes? We do not have a town square like many cities in Georgia currently, but I could see one being made at Dunwoody Village. Of course that land is not free. Is a south-central location (near Shallowford or Georgetown) a better option because land will be less expensive? I'm not sure where I want City Hall to be located. As long as we keep it in Dunwoody I think I'll be OK.
Bike Lanes
Back to bikes - we were taught a lesson about the types of bike lanes available. One option is to paint a white line on the side of the road, and like magic, you have a bike lane. These types of bike lanes irritate me and irritate the bike riders probably. These lanes never seem wide enough. As a current non-bike rider I think those lanes do not allow enough room for me and my Honda Odyssey. Can't imagine how the Dunwoody tennis mom rollin' in an Expedition would feel about those either. And the bike riders probably feel fairly unsafe as that white line provides little protection. It's really hard to stay out of that bike lane when I am driving while texting, and trying to change the DVD in my kids' video player. A guy can only do so many things at once.
I like the idea of bike lanes that run parallel to the street, but have a buffer (a strip of grass or curbing) separating the car lane from the bike lane. Of course these bike lanes are not free, nor have I seen a coupon for them in my monthly Costco mailer.
One other option is a really wide multi-use sidewalk. I've seen these things over in east Cobb. It is a sidewalk about five feet wide, designed for walkers and bikers. These are great, but no room for those in Dunwoody, except possibly on Ashford Dunwoody Road. I doubt the PCID wants a bunch of bike riders though.
The folks at my table placed stickers all over the Dunwoody map, showing where we'd like to see these bike paths. I put one sticker near my house just in case I decide to ride my bike. I bought a new bike and a deluxe bike rack for my van a year ago. I have no idea where that bike rack went and I rode the bike in the driveway once or twice and that's about it. My kids want to ride their bikes to Publix and Bruster's, but Spalding Drive near my house is barely safe for cars, let alone bicycles.
Based on the number of people who want bike lanes of some sort around Dunwoody, I think City Council will start looking at this issue more closely in upcoming months. In the end I hope we have lots of bike lanes, but I want the bike lanes that are separated from the street.
One idea floated around was having a bike path cutting across Dunwoody, using the electrical power line. This idea was quickly tossed aside as soon as we learned the power line is really owned not by the utility company, but by the hundreds of homeowners whose property backs up to it. No way you'll ever get 100% of those people to sign off on a bike path through their backyards. I did not see Bicycle Man at tonight's meeting.
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"bike path cutting across Dunwoody, using the electrical power line. This idea was quickly tossed aside as soon as we learned the power line is really owned not by the utility company, but by the hundreds of homeowners whose property backs up to it."
We could buy it. Ya see, CoD snuck in an additional "Cost of Living in Dunwoody" tax, otherwise known as franchise fees. Now these here franchise fees are a significant part of the city revenue justified by the Georgia Municipal Association as a cost of doing business in the cities that simplifies utility company RoW acquisition yet addresses citizen concerns.
I digress...
Let us suggest that some of this money we collect as franchise fees be used for the GMA stated purpose. Let's purchase either the property under the lines or just an additional easement, or perhaps use the $1-100yr lease approach. If we really have to, we could use our newly minted power of imminent domain...
It is also not unheard of to use these areas. I believe Sandy Springs has some of the morgan falls golf course under them (of course that was a land fill and probably not private property). There are also grant programs like Project WINGS--converting rights of way into wildlife habitats.
I wouldn't give up so easily. Perhaps Sustainability Patty can lead the charge.
You seem to have covered the meeting content very well. I am curious about one thing you said in regards to the current location of city hall. I walk there regularly because it is often quiet and shaded during the day. I don't care for bikes because I am lazy, but I do ride my scooter that way as well. I'll grant you the location is at distance from much of Dunwoody, and that may inhibit walkers, but Ashford Dunwoody Road has nearly complete sidewalks for walkers, and Perimeter Center East does as well. Perhaps some trails or paths will make their way from the neighborhoods east of there allowing better access from those neighborhoods.
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