Written by Marlene Rayner, marlene.rayner@sierraclub.org
Hello Everyone-
Below are the Turnback Facts for the City Council discussion and vote Tuesday evening on due diligence study for the 89A turnback. The timing for the discussion and vote will more than likely be after 5:30PM.
Much misinformation and scare tactics are being promoted at the moment in Sedona. Below are the strict facts. “Due diligence” (investigation of all the facts and costs) is essential for proper City decision making.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email or call.
Marlene
928-203-0340
Fact Sheet on SR 89A Turnback Issues
If you choose to speak, please complete one of the white cards (available just as you enter the door of the Council Chambers) with: your name, address, phone number, and the words: 9c TURN BACK.
Please consider speaking to the Council for 30 seconds, one (1) minute, or up to a maximum of three (3) minutes (a list of facts appears below for your reference).
2006 UPTOWN TURN BACK BACKGROUND
The total paid by the 2006 Sedona City Council for this design and construction for the Uptown Turn Back was $4 million, the direct result of poor advance learning, planning and research. Neither the 2006 Sedona City Council nor the former City Manager proactively undertook the responsible research into the turn back. Instead, months after the agreement between ADOT and the City was reached whereby ADOT agreed to pay the City $1.7 million, the 2006 Sedona City Council had to approve an additional $2.3 million to complete the project.
Presently, the 2006 Mayor from that Council is instilling fear and misinformation in Sedona residents about how much it would cost the City to do the west SR 89A turn back and the possible “unintended consequences” the City and its residents could face.
: Lack of proactive research and education resulted in “unintended consequences” and excessive City expense.
LIABILITY
FACTS:
* In the last three full years, there were 293 crashes on west SR 89A in West Sedona during the daytime and 17 crashes occurred during the nighttime.
* In that same period, there were 100 injuries during the daytime and three during the nighttime, or one injury at night per year.
ADOT is planning on applying a nighttime solution to a daytime problem. Furthermore, because the 2006 Sedona City Council voted to allow ADOT to proceed with their plan, the result is that liability increases for both ADOT and the City of Sedona.
In contrast, the 2010 City Council is researching taking back west SR 89A through West Sedona to include possible safety measures such as adding crosswalks, bicycle lanes, safety islands and strategic medians to ensure safety around the clock.
: Ensuring safety on west SR 89A in order to limit liability concerns necessitates consideration of the safety data, as well as the addition of safety measures. It is important to remember that liability does not arise simply by owning the road. Liability applies if you are negligent in maintaining or designing the roadway. By installing a nighttime solution to daytime safety problems (95% of the accidents happen in daytime) ADOT increases its liability (and the city’s) and contributes to its being considered negligent.
CONSTRUCTION DISRUPTION MYTH VS. FACT
Some residents have misleadingly said that if the City takes back west SR 89A, the City will undergo more construction during this economic downturn. Just the opposite is true.
If the City does not approve the responsible research needed to make an informed decision regarding whether to take back west SR 89A, ADOT will force continuous lights upon us and construction will occur sooner, rather than later.
In order to install the continuous roadway lights, ADOT will need to dig a trench on both sides of the street from Dry Creek Road to Airport Road. Streetlight construction will begin by spring of next year. Almost all of the trees and bushes in a 4-8 foot wide swath along both sides of the street will be removed in doing this. Every business access along the road will be impacted. The road will be under construction on both sides of the street for six months or longer – most likely longer if you have been watching how long ADOT is taking to put in the needed traffic light at Airport Road or how much longer than anticipated their construction has taken for SR 179.
Neither roundabouts nor continuous medians are being considered as part of this turnback. If the city takes back the road, any construction of safety improvements such as crosswalks and safety islands will be at very focused locations (as opposed to two miles of continuous trench for streetlights ) and done at a time of the city’s choosing.
COST ESTIMATES
Road Surfacing:
The current road surface of west SR 89A is almost 15 years old and will be resurfaced by ADOT next year. ADOT has already offered to do it as a part of a possible turn back. Should the city gain ownership of the road, it will be in “new” condition. Resurfacing will not likely be needed until sometime around 2026. Sedona’s present bond debt will be fully discharged by mid 2026. By the time west SR 89A likely needs to be resurfaced again, the $6.5 million now spent on bond payments will be available. One year of this payment will cover road resurfacing for another 15 years. Even in some kind of worst case scenario where resurfacing is needed in 10 – 12 years, by then our bond debt will be down to less than 1/3 what it is now, which offers an opportunity for refinancing and use of a new bond (something cities across the nation use regularly for road projects) to pay for it.
In addition, ADOT historically uses gasoline taxes to resurface its roads. If Sedona decides to take back west SR 89A, those collected taxes may be available to the City for use in resurfacing, or the City can apply for other federal funding for resurfacing and the resurfacing can be done in stages to spread out the cost.
Maintenance and Safety Improvement Estimates:
Annual maintenance costs for the road are split just about evenly between the City and ADOT with each paying just over $30,000 for a total of about $65,000 annually. If continuous roadway lighting streetlights (93 poles in Monterrey style, 35 ft tall, 2.5 ft arm, 200 watt high pressure sodium) were added, their annual costs are estimated at around $27,000 for electricity and maintenance. ADOT would want the city to pay for that. Thus, just the city’s annual maintenance costs for the road, with streetlights, would almost equal the total maintenance costs for both the City and ADOT without them.
As part of the beginning discussions, ADOT has already offered to:
* Pay for installation of the long-awaited Andante intersection traffic light,
* Give Sedona yearly maintenance costs of $75,000 per year for ten years,
Safety Upgrades:
ADOT is offering to give Sedona $2.75 million for “other” upgrades that Sedona feels will best result in true safety on west SR 89A such as Provide $2,750,000 for city-selected safety improvements such as crosswalks, safety islands, strategic medians, pedestrian barriers, etc
: Road surfacing, maintenance and safety upgrades need to be studied and considered in addition to the monetary funding being offered by ADOT before an informed decision of whether or not to pursue the west SR 89A turn back can be reached.
The Council will not be approving a turn back at this meeting.
Please attend the Sedona City Council meeting this Tuesday August 10 at 4:30PM in Council Chambers at City Hall.
It is not necessary for you to speak, but your presence helps to show support for Agenda Item 9c which the Council will be discussing and voting on whether to continue the educational process in order to learn more about a possible turn back west of SR 89A and allow the investigational process by staff and an engineer to proceed in learning as much as possible before making any decisions.
I guess Ms Rayner did not live in Sedona when the Dick Ellis council approved the Turnback
Dick Ellis was Mayor and his council did all research and voted to take back 89-A in Uptown Sedona. Please Mrs. Rayner work with your husband and our city manager to find out the correct information on take back of 89-A in uptown before we make another huge financial mistake with the remainder of Hwy 89-A. We are counting on your husband to be our fiscally responsible council member and Save Sedona!
Thank You Mrs. Rayner for being responsible, doing Your research and bringing the facts to light. There are still people here in Sedona that are promoting Scare Tactics and Misinformation for the Old Council’s hidden agenda, and having just read Liz Smith’s article is a perfect example of such.
Thanks to the Hard Work and Transparency of Our New Council, We may again see the Sedona that We love.
I just heard on MSNBC and on CBS that Colorado is turning off street lights to save necessary money! HAAALLLLOOOOOO, SEDOOOONAAAAA!!! What aren’t you getting yet???? Attention Please to the Slow Learners: Pole Sitting hurts.
I see Joe Blow is living up to his handle. Blowing misinformation around Sedona. The Council that approved the takeback, the Culquitt/Scagnelli Council, did not do their homework and went over budget by 135 percent, over 1.7 million dollars. This council voted to do the homework. With a capable City Manager, unlike Mr. Leavitt who was corrupt and incapable, we will have a chance to control our own destiny and do it in a financially responsible way. Either that or it won’t happen. Joe Blow is ignorant, as are the rest of us until we have the facts. He is more ignorant because he spews misinformation and takes a position before the facts are exposed. What’s worse that ignorant?
As usual Cliff is promoting his HATE agenda and is too lazy to pick up the phone and call Dick Ellis or Ernie Straugh and ask Dick and Ernie who researched and voted on the take back of HWY 89-A in uptown, they will both tell you it was their council not Pud Colquitt. They are both men of honor and have my respect.
The question is not which council approved the turn back. That was the right decision. The question is who lobbied, negotiated and who voted to spend 1.7 million beyond to make up for that which was poorly negotiated. I agree Straugh and Ellis are honorable people. Pud and Nancy are culpible in the overrun. Not Straugh or Ellis. That was after their time. Research it. Get the facts instead of constant misinformation.
Well, Cliff, to set you straight, I neither lobbied, negotiated nor voted to spend 1.7 million dollars in extra funds for the Uptown enhancement project while I was on council. Sorry, but you do have the facts wrong, AGAIN.
Cliff – I see you still have not picked up the phone and called Dick and Ernie, once again they will be very happy to set the record straight for you that Councilwomen Pud Colquitt and Nancy Scagnelli had nothing to do with Uptown turnback or the 1.7 million over-runs. I have listened and watched you and know your style is to “hit and run” over community members but we are all growing weary of your temper tantrums and misinformation.