Fate of Tess Corners Rec Path Will Be Decided Tuesday

The city's Public Works Committee reviewed a list of alternatives for the Tess Corners Drive construction plan Tuesday night, distilling their recommendations down to four options.

Upset because they were opposed to the existing plan, particularly the off-road recreational path they said would destroy too many old trees and lower their property values. They had and the committee was asked to come up with options.

Two options were rejected because of the cost. An elevated path separated from the road by curb and gutter would present a $790,000 increase in the cost of the project. Another concrete option for the current path would triple the current costs for the asphalt trail, or about $240,000.

Three other alternatives were approved for consideration, along with the original plan. Here are the options the council will have to select from at a meeting rescheduled 7 p.m Tuesday:

• Keep the existing plan, with an off-road 8-foot recreational path along the south side of the roadway. Costs estimated are $81,000

• Remove the path altogether. Redesign costs, according to Director of Public Works Dave Simpson, would be $30,000, which would result in a net decrease of the project cost of $51,000

• Narrow the path to 6 feet, a plan that would redesign will incur $6,500 in redesign costs, but will reduce the project construction costs by about $15,300 for a net savings of $8,800

• Place an onroad extension to allow for bike traffic. The redesign would cost $50,000, with another $200,000 needed for construction. In addition, the on road design would not save any trees, and possibly result in more trees having to be removed, according to Simpson. Aldermen and other residents have also voiced concerns about pedestrians and bicyclists sharing the same surface as vehicles, and this alternative would push the project start date to 2013.

An aerial map of the area provided by Simpson also pinpointed which properties had voiced their opinion either for or against the current plan for the path. Based on comments the city received from pubic hearings, emails, phone calls from March 29 to May 2, his numbers showed that 34 residents were favorable to the project as is, while 25 were opposed.

The statewide recall elections on Tuesday had previously caused the Common Council meeting to be canceled, but officials said that because of the tight timeline on the project if it was to move forward this year, it had to be rescheduled for that night.