HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-05-18 Public Comment- J. Hsu & D. Flatow - Van Winkle Stadium LocationFrom:Justin Hsu
To:Agenda
Subject:Van WInkle Stadium public comment
Date:Thursday, July 05, 2018 3:05:41 PM
I'm writing to comment on the high school's plan to move Van Winkle Stadium north of Ruth
Thibeault Way. I have three main concerns.
First and most important, I'm unconvinced that parking will become adequate under the highschool's current plan. My understanding is that about 100 spots are planned to be added to
help serve the new stadium, and the stadium itself has been slightly downsized from theoriginally planned 3300 seats, to 3100. This is a good start, but it's worth keeping in mind that
the existing parking struggles to serve the high school on an ordinary school day. I observethat the parking lot of New Beginnings Church, for example, is always filled to capacity when
class is in session. I spoke with a few current students, and this was their primary concern. The difficulty of parking near campus contributes to lateness for students and unpopularity
with neighbors (such as myself). The stadium itself, handling games for both high schools,will obviously exacerbate the existing conditions. Defenders of the stadium frequently
mention that the second high school will halve the attendance, but this will be a temporarydecrease, and the parking capacity should be appropriate to the ultimate capacity of the
school. If the outstanding problem with the school's design is not fixed now, it will have towait until yet another bond is passed.
My second concern is with the proposed main entrance to the high school on 15th. I
welcome anything that lessens the pressure on 11th, certainly, but 15th is still only aresidential, unpainted two-lane collector street with on-street parking. The proposed
roundabout should help, but the street itself has fairly limited capacity, and I would warnagainst treating the roundabout as a magic bullet. Any solution that could also more fully
utilize Main Street, or even possibly Durston, seems like it would be worth pursuing.
Finally, and thank you for reading this far, I'd like to address the high school's request for anexemption on planting trees in the new parking (Sec. 38.550.050 Parking Lot Landscaping).
The school justifies it by invoking student safety, but I'll admit I do not understand the dangerposed to our students by foliage. If the concern is budgetary, this is easier for me to
understand but still strikes me as a false economy. Please do not grant this exemption.
Thanks very much,Justin Hsu and Dana Flatow
1412 Durston Rd.