Council votes to deny funding to change Marquette Street, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive into two-way streets

By Stephanie Brien
Journal Times

Wednesday, August 20, 2008 9:05 PM CDT

RACINE — The city will not be converting Marquette Street and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive into two-way streets anytime soon.

On Tuesday night, the City Council voted to deny funding for a study that would have reviewed the possibility of converting both one-way streets into two-way streets.

The study would have cost the city roughly $19,000, said Alderman Michael Shields of the finance committee. “We weren’t sure where the money was going to come from,” Shields said.

The project was planned to be in conjunction with State Street construction in 2010. But Shields said even if the city conducted the study he is not sure if the state would accept the conversion as part of the construction project.

The Public Works and Services Committee and the Traffic Commission approved the study, but the plan never made it past that point. The Finance and Personnel Committee denied the funding.

Mayor Gary Becker was pushing the change to eliminate the one-way streets.

“Neighborhoods work and feel better when traffic is slower,” Becker said in earlier comments about the streets. “Nowadays you don’t have a rush hour like you used to.”

At a community meeting at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center in July, area residents had mixed reactions about the plan. Some believed it would make the street safer while others thought it could create dangerous intersections.

The study would have analyzed the intersections and traffic flow to determine if the change would make it safer, said Racine Public Works Commissioner Richard Jones.

In an earlier interview Jones said, “Generally two-way streets are better than one-way … however there are specific (exceptions).”

The intersections of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive with High Street and Douglas Avenue would have been especially intricate intersections to convert, Jones said.

Preliminary plans took that into account and the mayor said he would be willing to leave Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive alone and solely convert Marquette Street.

Original story

RACINE — Tonight the City Council could officially drop the idea of changing Marquette Street and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive into two-way streets.

The Finance and Personnel Committee denied funding Aug. 11 for a study about the possibility of converting both one-way streets into two-way streets.

The study would cost roughly $19,000, said Alderman Michael Shields of the finance committee.

Mayor Gary Becker is in support of the conversion, but needs City Council approval.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on the item tonight at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 730 Washington Ave.

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