Admin Order 58-99-05 (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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Stewart Road Closure May ] 0, 1999 Page 8 decision if he or she had been presented with the evidence and called upon to make an original decision. This task is made more difficult when, as here, the City did not provide notice and- an opportunity to comment or submit evidence before it made the decision. This means that it is very likely that new evidence will be submitted at an appeal hearing. This puts the City in a difficult position, because it cannot argue that all the evidence has been reviewed, since some of the evidence was put in the record after the City's decision was made. The City did not attempt to limit the record to facts before the City at the time of its initial decision. In its decision the City acknowledged that the safety issue of emergency response was relevant to the decision. The proposed closure was reviewed by police and fire department personnel, who approved the closure design, which provides for emergency vehicle access. The evidence introduced at the hearing suggests that there is a negative effect on police response, because not all the police are aware that they can remove the barrier, or they are not willing to take the time to do so in an emergency situation. We can speculate that the increased response time caused by the police attempting to use Stewart Road and then reversing course because of the closure will be relatively small, since word of the closure and the problems caused should circulate among the police officers. The increased response time for police who might be coming from the north to respond on Stewart Road who will now have to take the extra time to travel to and along West 11 `'' should be something less than the average increased travel time of 50 seconds. The evidence suggests that the City's conclusions concerning the effect of the closure on emergency response was incorrect, but only as a matter of degree. The City considered the question and made an appropriate decision, based on the evidence available. The hearing produced contrary evidence. The evidence suggests that, at least for a time, there will be an effect on emergency response as a result of the closure of Stewart Road. The City considered several traffic factors within the general criteria of traffic investigations. The traffic volume information and traffic origin information is described and the same conclusion is reached: that the closure will result in some increased travel time. The City reports on a traffic speed study and concludes that the reports of speeding vehicles are mainly a report of perceived speed. The City concludes that while actual speed is not excessive, the condition of the road, and the consequent noise and dust of traffic, creates a perception that vehicles are speeding. The City concludes that Stewart Road does not have an accident problem. The appellants do not directly challenge any of these conclusions. In the earlier hearing on the initial order to close Stewart Road, the appellants emphasized that a significant objectionable result for them was the number of vehicles that were cutting through private property to avoid having to reverse themselves because of the closure of Stewart Road. In this administrative order the City considers that impact of closing the road and concludes that while it might be a common initial occurrence, it will decline over time. The evidence from the appellants and other opponents of the