Summary of 3/29/11 City Council Meeting

By Gentle Reader

I attended the meeting last night, and the City Council decided to proactively pursue 25th-Harrison as the preferred alternative in the Streetcar project and to do so by working to change the zoning, etc, to make it the optimal route, in terms of economic development, etc.

Summary of meeting:

Amy Wicks, and I believe Suzie Van Hooser, stated, that if given a choice between 36th and Washington and NO project. They would rather have NO Project. It seemed most if not all of the council agreed with this.

They all agreed this project needs to get done right. They concluded that they want to PROACTIVELY WORK to MAKE 25th and Harrison WORK and be the best alternative on paper/in regards to the econ. development numbers, in the federal process- to do whatever it takes to change the zoning, etc. to be the corridor that best qualifies for federal funding. And they all agreed with the idea, put forward by Suzie and later echoed by Brandon, that you have to pick the corridor that works for the city, and DON'T TAKE NO for an answer. And then just arrange/adjust all the factors to make it work, such as the zoning, etc.

Amy Wicks stated that we need to be involved in EXACTLY what the Transit Corridor Study for Harrison would cover.

John Patterson was there on behalf of the mayor. The mayor is not in support of a corridor study for Harrison, as he feels it would be a waste because it duplicates information already provided by the Wilber-Smith consulting work done for the alternatives analysis, if I understand correctly.

The major steps they seem to want to take now are :

1) Fleshing out the details of what the contract with G.J. Arrington covers- what services he will provide. It seems he will essentially act as a consultant to tell Ogden officials how to do what they need to do to get the route that Ogden wants, to work, to put it simply.

2) Get going on a corridor study for Harrison. And fleshing out in detail what would be covered in that corridor study

3) Changing the zoning on 25th and Harrison.

The pace and quantity in support of 25-H and the strength of their willingness to do work to make it happen was amazing.

The entire council was in unanimous agreement by the end to PROACTIVELY pursue 25th-Harrison- not just in support of it, but to PROACTIVELY change the zoning, etc. ...to make it work.