The Oakley City Council intends to create a master transportation plan to guide future development and traffic calming measures in conjunction with the S.R. 32 Corridor and City Centers Plan. The S.R. 32 Corridor and City Centers Plan was a collaborative effort among Oakley, Kamas, Francis, the Utah Department of Transportation and Summit County to establish a holistic vision of development and connectivity in the Kamas Valley. However, the drafted plan, which was publicized in November, is mostly a recommendation rather than a blueprint for a large-scale construction project. “This study came about because the plan for State Road 32 was an expansion,” explained city planner Stephanie Woolstenhulme. “None of the communities were in support of that, so we were looking at different ways to make it possible to keep State Road 32 functioning as a two-lane highway.” The S.R. 32 plan analyzed land use, transportation and economic factors to determine strategies to better traffic flow and improve infrastructure while still retaining the Kamas Valley’s rural character and the unique identities of each municipality. It also included recommendations for each municipality regarding growth and development in the city centers, a project the Oakley City Council has already been exploring in its negotiations with local businessman Steve Smith. Woolstenhulme said the plan and the feedback the city received from residents “wasn’t that surprising” in terms of the major areas of concern along S.R. 32. Community members mostly remarked on speeding and pedestrian safety, as well as a desire to protect agriculture and open space. Specifically, Woolstenhulme said the S.R. 32 Corridor and City Centers Plan recommended retaining open space between Democrat Alley and the state road. However, Democrat Alley was also mentioned in the plan as a potential location for a future bypass to avoid S.R. 32 altogether. Other traffic calming measures included three roundabouts in Oakley, which the City Council seemed to favor over stoplights. The roundabouts, as proposed in the plan, all intersect with S.R. 32, with one located on Boulderville Road, the second on Cow Alley and the third on Bench Road. “We didn’t dive too deep into this because it’s obviously a very hot topic and we don’t want to alarm the public, but we need to help people understand that in order to keep State Route 32 where it is, we do have to start considering these other transportation measures,” Woolstenhulme said. She suggested the City Council work with staff to create its own master transportation plan outlining how the municipality wants to approach future infrastructure improvements and changes. “We need to understand what that overlay looks like as far as land acquisition, as far as the space needed for (roundabouts), as far as if they would work and if they would really add to our community,” Woolstenhulme said. “We don’t want something that is just for traffic. We want it to enhance the overall feeling of projects coming in and out of Oakley and in our city center, too.” Woolstenhulme said adopting a master transportation plan would give UDOT the greenlight to initiate feasibility studies on installing roundabouts on S.R. 32. It would also give the city direction in approving other developments and guiding the growth of the area. “Knowing what we want ahead of time allows us to be proactive in the process early rather than trying to snatch up properties that we need or, heaven forbid, kicking somebody off their property or anything like that,” Woolstenhulme said. The City Council favored exploring its options sooner rather than later, citing ongoing safety concerns, especially for pedestrians. “With this whole thing being a skeleton for future growth possibilities, I think transportation is the backbone of it,” said City Councilor Amy Regan. “To have that conceptualized is probably the most important part of this right now.” The City Council voted to accept the results of the S.R. 32 Corridor and City Centers Plan in addition to creating a localized master transportation plan. City councilors also stated a desire to start internally exploring the feasibility of installing roundabouts in the city before contacting UDOT for an official study. There was no approximate timeline given regarding when a draft of the master transportation plan will be available. The post Oakley to develop localized master transportation plan to guide future growth appeared first on Park Record. ...read more read less