Many of the reasons listed below I mentioned at today's village council meeting, but here is the complete list of my concerns:
I am opposed to the NCDOT proposed project for N Highland Lake Road for the following reasons:
- The Village has rightfully earned a sterling reputation as stewards of the park. Allowing DOT to cut over 186 trees and build a sidewalk to nowhere will severely affect that reputation.
- N Highland Lake Road is not a dangerous road for driving, so I’m unclear as to NCDOT’s rationale for proposing changes to this road as opposed to other more dangerous roads.
- If the existing curves are dampened, drivers will increase their speed, creating more risk.
- A conservative count of the trees on the north side of the road (park/church side) shows a minimum of over 186 trees will be cut down. Additional trees may also be cut down on the south side. As a village that prides ourselves on our commitment to maintaining a natural landscape, as evidenced by our own tree ordinance, eliminating so many trees changes the entire character of the area.
- The lanes on N Highland Lake Road are currently each 11 ft wide—and that is the width proposed for Kanuga Road improvements (Hendersonville Lightning, 7/18/17). There is no reason to change the lane width here if that planned width will work for Kanuga, a road that NCDOT is trying to make safer.
- N Highland Lake Road is one of the main entrances into the village. Maintaining our rural sense of place is one reason I fought so hard to keep the soccer fields out, but by cutting over 186 trees, straightening the curves, and creating a suburban-like feel, that rural sense is destroyed.
- We have legal obligations under the PARTF grant that we received to buy the park that we have not looked into as far as I know. Under their Administrative Rules and Code Requirements, it is stated “the property acquired with a PARTF grant must be dedicated forever for public recreation.”
- We need to know how NCDOT is funding this project. If it involves federal funds, given Flat Rock’s designation on the National Register of Historic Places, section 4(f) of the DOT Act of 1966 must be considered. This stipulates that DOT can only approve the use of land from publicly owned parks or public and private historic sites, among other areas, under certain conditions.
- We will be building a sidewalk to nowhere. If we do want to build a sidewalk to the park, it would make more sense to wait until a sidewalk/walkway from the existing village sidewalk is built down Greenville Highway. That sidewalk may be many years from completion if ever. What we would have now would be a sidewalk that ends with no connection in sight—a sidewalk with no purpose.
- Cutting down the trees in the park removes a natural barrier between the park and the road, changes the sense of place in the park, and also shrinks the size of the park.
- While NCDOT has put some time and money into this project, better to decide now before construction starts if we are not in favor. It is not always easy to know exactly how a project will impact the surrounding area until more comprehensive plans have been presented, and for me that is the case here.
- While NCDOT has assured us that they will mitigate any drainage issues that may occur because of adding hardscape to the road, there have been water runoff and drainage issues on Upward Road since it was expanded that NCDOT has not addressed (Times-News, 8/13/17).
- The Village of Flat Rock is on the National Register of Historic Places. The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (the operating legislation) is handled by the National Park Service. They have acknowledged that roadways are an integral part of the character of historic places. Here are their historic road guidelines from their publication, Landscape Line 16: Historic Roads (I’ve bolded items I think are particularly pertinent to N Highland Lake Road):
Historic Park Road Treatment Guidelines
- Preserve as much of the historic road corridor as possible, including constructed features and associated landscape settings
- Consider managerial solutions before proposing physical alterations to historic road landscapes
- Promote alternative transportation to reduce traffic volume and control circulation patterns
- Maintain historic road alignments, cross-sections and profiles as closely as possible
- Realign roads only when absolutely necessary and try to retain historic character, views, width, and curvature
- Retain original road width where possible; consider alternative techniques such as stabilized shoulders
- Preserve, rehabilitate, or find compatible replacements for original paving materials
- Preserve, restore, or replace-in-kind historic features such as barrier walls, fences, and guardrails, curbs, gutters, culverts, signage, scenic pullouts, bridges, and tunnels
- Limit the construction of new barriers or systematic rehabilitation to areas with demonstrated safety hazards
- Use materials and construction methods that replicate the effect of historic building practices
- Modern materials and construction methods that reduce costs and enhance durability should only be used where they do not detract from historical character
- Choose materials and methods that are sustainable, compatible, and cost-effective in the long term
- Maintain and restore historic vegetation patterns, especially in regard to corridor-width, canopies, and planned vistas
- Protect associated scenic, natural, and cultural features that are part of the character of the road system including rock formations, vegetation, water bodies, views, agricultural areas, buildings, structures, markers, and monuments
- Preserve ethnographic resources and protect archeological sites
- Develop interpretation programs to enhance public awareness of park road history and build support for historic road preservation
