Thursday, June 14, 2007

jkirlin, civic lunatic

Above is a photo of a small traffic island installed in the middle Howard Street, a residential feeder street. This is the result of years of complaints about the amount of traffic and speeding, although a recent traffic study by Ames Engineering concluded there was no more speeding there than anyplace else in town. In the comment section is an email exchange on the issue between myself and a very gracious City Manager Ed Barrett.

Note the times of the emails. "Ring" is City Engineer James Ring and when I mentioned this to neighbor and City Councilman Dr Geoff Gratwick, he said that he HAD indeed, seen the letters. So if you are bored and want to see why you should be glad don't work for a city I live in, and see me enjoy a cup of crow, go have a peek.

19 comments:

  1. From: jkirlin@gmail.com
    Sent: Thursday, June 14, 2007 2:15 AM
    To: Barrett, Ed
    Subject: Howard Street

    Dear Mr Barrett,

    That island on Howard Street installed as a traffic calming measure is the stupidest thing I have ever seen.

    How those whiners and complainers get off ruining traffic flow in the city is beyond me. Do you live over there?

    I look forward to having one installed in front on my home on Union Street. Maybe 5 or 6 of them. And a windmill.

    Please forward this to the City Engineer and the Council if you get a chance so they'll know how much his work is appreciated.

    Jeff Kirlin

    ReplyDelete
  2. On 6/14/07, Barrett, Ed ed.barrett@bangormaine.gov wrote:

    Dear Mr. Kirlin:

    Per your request, I have forwarded your email to the City Engineer and the Council. I do not live on Howard or in that area of Bangor. I am a west side resident.

    The City Council authorized the traffic calming measures on Howard Street after a long series of public meetings around the issues of speed and traffic volume on this residential street. These meetings were well attended by residents of both Howard Street and other streets on Bangor's eastside. In addition, a traffic study was conducted that documented traffic volumes and speeds in the overall neighborhood. A copy of that study is available at www.bangormaine.gov/Howard.pdf. Those who attended a neighborhood meeting at Cohen School on this subject were also surveyed as to their concerns and their reactions to a number of proposed alternatives. Based on the available information and process, the Council authorized the installation of a modified traffic circle and raised crosswalk to address speed concerns and implemented no left turns at Howard and State (a high crash location). The no left turn prohibition was implemented for a six month period to allow its impact to be evaluated. The impact of these changes is now under study and a report will be made to the City Council later this summer/fall. It is possible that similar or other traffic calming measures may be implemented in the future on residential street with significant speeding problems.

    Sincerely,

    Ed Barrett

    City Manager

    ReplyDelete
  3. From: jkirlin@gmail.com
    Sent: Thursday, June 14, 2007 9:03 AM
    To: Barrett, Ed
    Cc: Councilors; Ring, Jim; Wardwell, Dana
    Subject: Re: Howard Street

    Dear Mr Barrett,

    Thanks for your prompt reply. After reading the Ames Engineering report, I was surprised to see their recommendation for the traffic island given their own conclusions that the high rates of speed on Howard Street to be a matter of perception rather than actual excess of the 25 mph speed limit. I'm certain there is far more speeding on Union Street, Hammond, Ohio, or West Broadway as you, a West Side resident, must surely know.

    Fern Street also seems to be a High Crash Location. I look forward to another garden planted in there. Will this be replaced every spring? The City plows seem to be unable to plow Union Street without tearing off extensive sections of curbing, I can't imagine they'd be able to negotiate the Howard Street Traffic Calming Circle.

    I find myself in agreement with the Howard Street Residents on the left hand turn from State Street. That was a nightmare, and the city is to be commended for changing that. It's unfortunate, however, that Union Street was narrowed by a foot a couple of years ago, making left turns significantly more dangerous as drivers will still attempt to ride the Seminary Hill in order to pass on the right. Unfortunately I missed the meeting where input was sought for that project.

    Jeff Kirlin

    ReplyDelete
  4. from "Barrett, Ed" ed.barrett@bangormaine.gov
    to jkirlin@gmail.com
    cc Councilors Councilors@bgrme.org,
    "Ring, Jim" jim.ring@bangormaine.gov,
    "Wardwell, Dana" dana.wardwell@bgrme.org
    date Jun 14, 2007 9:43 AM

    subject RE: Howard Street

    Mr. Kirlin:

    Our engineering department is reviewing the situation at Fern and State. We believe that there is either a site line problem or a problem at specific times of the year due to the sun setting in drivers eye’s.

    Speeding, as well as red light violations, seems to be a growing problem throughout Bangor and one that the Police Department is attempting to address. Our new Police Chief will be making this a priority, especially in residential areas and school zones/heavy pedestrian areas.

    The majority of plow damage seems to occur when we are dealing with early and late season storms when the ground is not yet frozen or has thawed. Last year was a particularly bad year in this regard, especially due to the last storm we had. The design of the traffic island includes a roll curb on the island itself which is designed to allow our plows to “ride up” on the curb if necessary to allow them to clear the asphalt curb at the side of the street. We acknowledge that the Howard installation is an experiment as the first such installation here in town and we will monitor it this winter to see how much impact plowing might have on it..

    We are also considering modifying our standard plowing regime to be less aggressive in clearing the entire street width, especially for late spring storms as a way to minimize plow damage. Our concern is whether such a change would be accepted by the public.

    Ed Barrett

    ReplyDelete
  5. Dear Mr Barrett, Mr Ring, and Mr Wardwell,

    I am writing with an apology. This afternoon I went over to Howard Street to photograph the traffic island to illustrate a post I was going put on my blog. I ran into a couple of Howard Street residents who wanted to know why I was taking photos and if I was for or against the traffic island. Being outnumbered (heh heh) I said I hadn't decided yet. For the next 45 minutes I was given their version of their attempts to have traffic managed on Howard.

    Basically, now I see the people and arguments you've been having to deal with. I now see that traffic island as the work of the Voices of Reason. It allowed for a very smooth flow of traffic, didn't seem to bother anyone much while I was there, was much smaller than I initially thought it was, was better marked, and much less of a hazard should anyone actually hit it. It's FAR SUPERIOR to any of the other suggestions I heard from the few Howard Street residents trying to win me over to their side. I might avoid Howard Street from now on, not because of the traffic island, but because I'm afraid of what might happen to me should my car break down over there!

    Listen, Mr. Barrett, your gracious, thoughtful, and full explanations of the traffic situation was far more than I deserved for my initial letter which I fully expected to simply have deleted. I'm awed by the response I've received and for what it counts, you have one more citizen VERY satisfied with the work that you and the others do for the city.

    Sincerely,

    Jeff Kirlin
    283 Union Street
    Bangor, Maine

    ReplyDelete
  6. YOU, Mr Union Street resident are the exact reason why people don't go into politics.

    This poor cat just wanted to drink his coffee and collect his pension, but NNNOOOOOOOO. You had to interrupt his morning Bangor Times reading with some late-night diatribe.

    But I do have to say, your foot looks pretty good in your mouth! If I was only there to photograph it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. If I give you some contact info would you see what you can do about the arsenic in our city water, and the already doubled monthly water bills, soon to be increased AGAIN, to deal with it? Ugh. I hate our town's politics. Hate hate hate. And of course all the key players are, um, obnoxious. That's all I'd better say in a public forum like this, lol.

    PS I drink Culligan water, from a dispenser thingie with hot, cold, and room temp spigots. Cuz eww, arsenic. Cheaper to let us all drink bottled water than to triple our freaking water bills. Oops, there I go again.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Patient, thoughtful, and civil civil servants!? Cranky cranks reduced to praising their targets and muttering humble apologies?

    You live in an odd city JKirlin.

    ReplyDelete
  9. spk: You've got it down perfectly.

    toadyjoe: ARSENIC IN YOUR WATER??? Did you see me complaining about having to go the speed limit to get around a little traffic island??? And you bring up your silly arsenic in your water?? That you and your family DRINK? While granted I could use any one of another 20 streets instead of Howard to get to the Mall. I think you are failing to feel my pain here and making this about you. Heh heh.

    thingseen: I know it. And the people at DMV and the place you have to go to pay your excise taxes? Really nice, too. I feel so, so..conflicted.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I can't believe he didn't tell you to piss off.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I wrote to Mr Barrett to let him know I was eating crow in public.

    "Barrett, Ed" ed.barrett@bangormaine.gov
    to jkirlin@gmail.com
    cc
    "Ring, Jim" jim.ring@bangormaine.gov,
    "Wardwell, Dana" dana.wardwell@bgrme.org,
    Councilors Councilors@bgrme.org
    date Jun 15, 2007 8:23 AM
    subject RE: Howard Street

    Dear Mr. Kirlin:

    One of the great joys of working in City government is the range of issues that we deal with as well as the citizens with whom we come into contact. The City Council and our staff take citizen comments and involvement very seriously and always try to respond. We understand that everyone has a busy life these days and that it is not always possible to be aware of or involved in the decisions that affect our community or our neighborhoods. Questions and comments such as yours provide us with an opportunity to provide information and explanations.

    Traffic calming has become a major effort in many cities throughout the country. Howard Street is our first serious foray into this area, and we will be watching it closely to see how it works.

    I appreciate your placing our correspondence on your blog and liked the picture you took of the island. Please feel free to contact me at any point in the future should you have other questions or concerns about the City.

    Sincerely,

    Ed Barrett

    ReplyDelete
  12. "Ring, Jim" jim.ring@bangormaine.gov
    to jkirlin@gmail.com
    cc
    "Barrett, Ed" ed.barrett@bangormaine.gov,
    "Wardwell, Dana" dana.wardwell@bgrme.org
    date Jun 15, 2007 8:36 AM
    subject RE: Howard Street

    Good morning, Mr. Kirlin:

    Thank you for taking the time to follow up on your earlier comments.

    I was out of the office most of yesterday and was unable to respond directly but was aware of Mr. Barrett's responses to you. In talking to some Howard Street folks, I'm sure you got a flavor of the issues and considerations that we have been dealing with. Increased traffic, especially in neighborhoods is one of the most difficult issues we deal with on a fairly regular basis - evaluating and balancing the right to use public streets vs. unreasonable impacts for a specific segment of citizens. In the months that we dealt with this particular issue, several options were carefully weighed and the Council considered the measures implemented on Howard Street to be the most reasonable and appropriate. Like anything new, initial reactions are often strong and it takes awhile for the "dust to settle" and to evaluate effectiveness. This type of approach may or may not be the best one, but if such things are not tried, we will never know.

    Again, thank you for your comments. If you have any other questions or comments, please feel free to contact me directly.

    Jim Ring

    ReplyDelete
  13. Aren't you guys jealous you don't have City Employees like THIS???

    ReplyDelete
  14. I dunno. Ours are pretty cool at times.

    I had a "No parking beyond this point" sign moved from one side of my driveway to the other with ONE PHONE CALL. ONE. People were obeying the sign literally and parking across my driveway, making it impossible for me to get into or out of it. Which is also illegal, but that's another issue. So the local city employees here aren't too bad.

    Also, the inspector who came to check the fence a neighbour had complained about called the neighbour a crank and said he'd seen much worse and sympathized with my plight. I still had to replace the fence but laughing at my control freak neighbour with nice Mr. Inspector took some of the sting out of it.

    *waves to City Hall*

    ReplyDelete
  15. Also, what have they planted in that island? It looks like corn.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Somehow I'm not surprised that you were "one of those" residents, but I marvel at the response you have received. Can you come to Texas and fix some things? I like our mayor, but our governor is another story.

    ReplyDelete
  17. wrath: Who could want a fence between you and them???

    laanba: Oh, you think I haven't written that EVIL IDIOT Rick Perry?

    ReplyDelete
  18. I KNOW.

    Boggles the mind, doesn't it?

    Mind you, in light of the new, trampoline-jumpin', squealin' like stuck pigs neighbours on that side, I'm kinda glad I went for the 6' high privacy fence when I replaced it. Now if I could only make it soundproof...

    ReplyDelete
  19. JK
    Will you be posting more of the Howard St. Traffic Circle as the garden becomes more prolific? Maybe the Howard St. Rebels should have planted corn, squash, and beans to be able to feed themselves when they get shunned.
    JP

    ReplyDelete

Jen White