12- Woodstock Planning Board Meeting Report

Today is Wednesday, November 25th. Last night, the Woodstock Planning Board met to review the RUPCO Final Environmental Impact Statement, or rather the parts of it that had been found problematic to a specific group of people, public excluded. This meeting was closed to public participation but open to public audience. The review began close to 8 PM after nearly two hours on other topics, and continued past 10:15 PM, which is when I left.

On the issue of the "improved" sight line at Playhouse Lane and Route 212, the majority of the board seemed to suggest that since the New York State Department of Transportation had cleared the bushes that previously compromised the sight line, the problem has been eliminated. However, at least one board member pushed to have the sight distance measured again, and so it shall be measured again.

If a car or truck or two are parked legally when this measurement is done, the sight line will be found to be less than that assumed by the majority of the Planning Board. No matter what happens when RUPCO's people measure the sight line again, I will enter into evidence (during the public comment period) the fact that legal parking spaces, recently created by the NYS DOT's placement of signs there, are responsible for the lasting sight line problem at this intersection.

I do not know what is going to happen next. I do not know when the public comment period begins or ends. I will let you know when I find out.

11- Sight Distance Update

With no immediate reason cited, only some old ones, the New York State Department of Transportation tore out the bushes at the corner of Playhouse Lane and Route 212, on Monday, November 2. I was out of town and did not see it firsthand. Also torn out was a big chunk of the berm on which the bushes had been planted many years ago. The bushes, or perhaps other bushes, were planted along the Playhouse Lane edge of the property. I'm not sure whether the Playhouse people wanted that or not. Although it seems to have been done with a heavy hand, and perhaps asking for some trouble given that a tree now seems to be dangerously close to the edge of the berm, it was done. As regards the RUPCO development's safety, this SHOULD be a good turn of events. But it's not. Please read on.

Remember, before, when the bushes were there, cars parked along the edge of that property, on the north side of Route 212, and blocked ANY visibility whatsoever after about a hundred feet? (They did.) Now, since there is so much more ROOM as a result of the berm having been carved away, cars started to park along that stretch much more liberally. I returned to town a week after the bush removal. I'm not sure WHEN the three "no parking" signs went up indicating no parking at any time, but they went up, all on a very short stretch of Route 212 across from Playhouse Plaza.

THREE SIGNS, you are thinking, that's just what the safety officer ordered. But it's not that simple (even though it should be.)

Still legal!!

How the signs read.

As you can see in the pictures, the signs prohibiting parking don't start until over a car length, or rather truck length from the intersection of Playhouse Lane and Route 212. And the no parking area ends further east, but still well within the expanded sight line of the cars exiting Playhouse Lane and looking left/east.

That means that if you want to park along that now widened shoulder of Route 212, you can, but only if you park right up at the intersection with Playhouse Lane, or much further east. So, while once the bushes and cars parked along the shoulder blocked visibility, now the ONLY place one is allowed to park is in the very place that brings visibility to zero feet.

Of course, the visibility is blocked by the near car, but then one can see beyond the car. That is, IF the car is narrow enough. If it was a truck, not a car, maybe not. Plus, the next legal parking area, in my photo, contains a rather small Volvo sedan. Clearly, this photo is the best case of the legally parked cars scenario.

The term used to measure how far one can see is "sight line" or "sight distance." In our newly carved up intersection, we have a "sight pocket."

And another thing: Whereas before, trucks parked along the north side to make their deliveries to Playhouse Plaza, now there is not enough room, so they are stopping in the moving traffic lanes, taking up half the width of the eastbound lane and blocking parked cars.

The fact is, the sight distance is still inadequate when there are any cars parked legally on the north side of Route 212 (which is often,)

In short, the intersection is less safe than before.

Interesting alternative theory: A passerby commented, the other day as I was taking pictures, that it is illegal to park on the shoulder of a state road at any location. Well, if that is the case, then all three of the no parking signs should have arrows pointing BOTH ways to indicate no parking anywhere along the road. As the signs are presented, any logical mind would infer that parking between the signs is prohibited, but parking outside the signs is OK.

10- Environmental Impact Statement Review - schedule update

The Woodstock Planning Board will be reviewing part of RUPCO's Final Environmental Impact Statement in a workshop meeting on Tuesday, November 24 at 6 PM (I have been told in a phone message by an interested neighbor, but could not find this on any website. They don't make it too easy to find out what they are doing...) I believe this is the meeting at which the traffic and safety issues in the FEIS will be discussed. The public may attend the workshop meeting, but may not participate, at least that is my understanding of the rules. I believe that after the planning board has their series of workshop meetings, there will be a period of ten days during which the public can send written comments for the board's consideration.