The Haines Borough administration is taking a second look at installing a sidewalk in front of Mountain Market as part of the Third Avenue improvement project, which got under way this week.
The assembly approved the project design in March, which includes installing a mid-block crosswalk in front of the borough administration building instead of extending a raised-curb sidewalk to Old Haines Highway from the public library.
The planning commission never got a chance to comment on the design.
At its May 8 meeting, the commission decided to submit a recommendation anyway, and passed a motion directing the manager to further investigate the possibility of building a sidewalk in front of Mountain Market.
“There are gaps where there is not proper, safe walking area for the folks walking up and down there,” said commissioner Robert Venables, who made the motion. “We really weren’t presented with an explanation that went into the project planning.”
Manager David Sosa said Tuesday the possibility is “still being examined” as to whether the commission’s request warrants a change order to the project.
“We have to examine the costs associated with it and the value of it, versus just having the sidewalk on the other side,” Sosa said.
Public facilities director Carlos Jimenez, who maintains that installing a sidewalk in front of Mountain Market wouldn’t make the area any safer, said he hasn’t been directed to alter the design or make a change order.
“I still contend if you park a big truck in (the Mountain Market parking lot) and back up, you are going to be on the sidewalk. I think it’s inviting people to be put in harm’s way,” Jimenez said. “I don’t think it is going to be any safer than it is right now if you put a sidewalk there.”
Planning commissioner Heather Lende disagreed with Jimenez’s argument and said in an interview that a continuous sidewalk between the public library and the Haines School would be much safer.
“If we’re going to do the road anyway, we might as well connect that,” Lende said.
Lende pointed to a new sidewalk constructed along a similar parking lot at the Haines Quick Shop parking lot. “I saw how much nicer the Quick Shop is with it. It’s so much safer,” she said.
Lende said she was perplexed that the design didn’t come before the commission, an omission facilities director Jimenez has said was an oversight on his part.
“I wasn’t sure why it didn’t come to the planning commission. I was surprised you could just kind of not have a sidewalk if you don’t want one,” Lende said.
Planning and zoning technician Tracy Cui also said she didn’t see the plans before they went to the assembly for approval. “The planning commission was not a part of the discussion. I didn’t see the plan. The planning commission didn’t see the plan. Only the assembly did,” Cui said.
The assembly approved awarding the $1.13 million construction contract for the Third Avenue improvements to Southeast Roadbuilders at its May 13 meeting.
Surveying work started Tuesday, Jimenez said.
Third Avenue will be partially closed next week. The section from the administration building to Main Street will be closed for three to five days, and then the section from the administration building to Old Haines Highway will be closed for three to five days, Jimenez said.
The project is set to be completed by September.
According to the current design, a sidewalk will run the length of the east side of Third Avenue, but the west side will only have a sidewalk from Main Street to the administration building.