A traffic light is set to be installed at Lee Highway and Edgemon Road in Collegedale, but it may be two years away.
The intersection has been a location where multiple crashes have occurred, including three recent wrecks, said Collegedale Police Chief Brian Hickman. The city has submitted evidence to TDOT showing this to be a problem area and TDOT has agreed to put a signal where the roads meet.
Adding a traffic light, however, is still in the planning and development stage. It will be fully funded by TDOT, but according to its timeline, which will be around two years, said City Manager Ted Rogers.
Studies are being done to address the problem, but until the signal is installed, the commissioners are considering dropping the speed limit in the area from 55 to 50 miles per hour in hopes it will improve safety. However, the police chief said it is hard for police to monitor because of limited parking spots, which makes it dangerous for the officers. The commissioners will be the ones to make a decision on the speed limit, said Chief Hickman.
Collegedale has other problems with intersections on state-owned roads because the signals are not synchronized, officials said. Director of Public Works Eric Sines is aware of the issues and said it is because wires are broken under the paving. Mr. Rogers said the city fixes them and they continue to break. He said it is mainly due to bad asphalt that cracks and shifts causing the wires to break.
TDOT has planned for new traffic signals at many of the problem intersections, but they are a year or a year and a half from being installed. In order for traffic to flow smoothly, City Manager Rogers proposed to go ahead and fix the wiring at these locations. He told the commissioners every time a wire is replaced it costs the city $4,000. “You can’t win for losing,” he said.
Collegedale acquired a house and 30 acres when settling a lawsuit with property owners who lived next to the police firing range. The plans are to sell the house but keep 10 acres along the back of the property to serve as a buffer between the house and firing range. City Attorney Sam Elliott will draw up a sellers disclosure form to be certain any buyer will be aware of the noise related to the firing range. “We bought it once, we don’t want to buy it again,” he said.
Before it is sold, the air conditioning system in the house needs to be replaced. The lack of air conditioning can cause deterioration of the interior which can be considered an emergency, said City Attorney Elliott, so the bid process can legally be skipped. Two estimates have been received for around $ 6,000. The commissioners voted to have the work done with the cost to be recouped in the sale price of the house.
The financial report at fiscal year end, given by Mr. Rogers, showed everything as expected, he said. The 2014-2015 budget ended June 30 with the city having collected 112 percent of expected revenues. The figures are preliminary because all bills for services performed in June have not yet come in, he said, and when they do, money will be transferred as needed to balance the budget.
Mayor Katie Lamb announced that she has appointed David Barto, director of the Collegedale Foundation, to fill a position on Collegedale’s planning commission. He joined the group last week, but a vote of approval by the commissioners Monday night made the appointment official.