Clifton Corridor (Decatur, North Decatur, Druid Hills: townhouse, construction, live)

[bu2]

Powerpoint with the latest proposal for the Clifton Corridor.

The link is in the Druid Hills Civic Association Newsletter.

https://druidhills.org/

Much of it will be in the median of North Decatur Road which is already grade F in traffic.
They will be taking approximately half the front yard of existing houses along North Decatur (slides 16 and 17). Streets like Princeton already can't get out or in without someone letting them through during rush hour. Rail in the median will make those streets unlivable. This proposal will be very bad for Druid Hills.

Looks like I am going to have to spend a lot of time writing letters the next few years.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by bu2

Powerpoint with the latest proposal for the Clifton Corridor.

The link is in the Druid Hills Civic Association Newsletter.

https://druidhills.org/

Much of it will be in the median of North Decatur Road which is already grade F in traffic.
They will be taking approximately half the front yard of existing houses along North Decatur (slides 16 and 17). Streets like Princeton already can't get out or in without someone letting them through during rush hour. Rail in the median will make those streets unlivable. This proposal will be very bad for Druid Hills.

Looks like I am going to have to spend a lot of time writing letters the next few years.

Yeah, N Decatur should not be widened. Just give one lane to transit and keep one for cars. Traffic is going to be an "F" regardless. Transit will at least give people more options and add a lot more capacity to the road.

[MattCW]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Yeah, N Decatur should not be widened. Just give one lane to transit and keep one for cars. Traffic is going to be an "F" regardless. Transit will at least give people more options and add a lot more capacity to the road.

You obviously don't ever go through there, taking away one lane entirely would be catastrophic for the area.

[primaltech]

Light rail is more capacity than replacing a vehicle lane, IF the trains are very frequent, and if the trains are all running full or near full. I don't know exactly what the math is as far as the cutoff point, but I don't know if "a lot more capacity" is necessarily automatically true.

[Iconographer]

I'm finding this quite difficult to envision, and for the same reasons as given above.
If it takes this direction, expect the SFHs lining N. Decatur Rd. from Haygood to Scott Blvd. to disappear in favor of denser housing over the next few years. It's already happening around the corner on Clairmont.

[bu2]

Originally Posted by Iconographer

I'm finding this quite difficult to envision, and for the same reasons as given above.
If it takes this direction, expect the SFHs lining N. Decatur Rd. from Haygood to Scott Blvd. to disappear in favor of denser housing over the next few years. It's already happening around the corner on Clairmont.

Difficult in a historic district.

SFH on North Decatur from Haygood out to Scott St. don't make much sense long run, but they are there.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by bu2

Difficult in a historic district.

SFH on North Decatur from Haygood out to Scott St. don't make much sense long run, but they are there.

They'll find a way. Many of the houses in East Druid Hills are exempt from the HD restrictions due to their younger age. And it didn't serve to halt construction of a townhouse community on Clairmont; the houses they leveled there were the same vintage as those on N. Decatur. Besides, the SFHs along there are already seriously devalued and will basically be good for little more than land value once they face four lanes and a LR line.

[jeoff]

Originally Posted by Iconographer

They'll find a way. Many of the houses in East Druid Hills are exempt from the HD restrictions due to their younger age. And it didn't serve to halt construction of a townhouse community on Clairmont; the houses they leveled there were the same vintage as those on N. Decatur. Besides, the SFHs along there are already seriously devalued and will basically be good for little more than land value once they face four lanes and a LR line.

Emory has bought up over half of the Emory Grove homes that face North Decatur. 85%+ of the yard loss is through that side of the road. The big win for them is to get the transit through. Would they want to increase congestion on that stretch by adding townhomes?— if it is, I am sure they will get it. I sort of wonder how they are going to fit the at-grade section in the Clairmont Road area. Adding 30ft of road between RiceMac and McDonalds look pretty tight. I guess McDonalds will be losing their parking lot, and I guess Publix will take a hit as well.

[Iconographer]

Originally Posted by jeoff

Emory has bought up over half of the Emory Grove homes that face North Decatur. 85%+ of the yard loss is through that side of the road. The big win for them is to get the transit through. Would they want to increase congestion on that stretch by adding townhomes?— if it is, I am sure they will get it. I sort of wonder how they are going to fit the at-grade section in the Clairmont Road area. Adding 30ft of road between RiceMac and McDonalds look pretty tight. I guess McDonalds will be losing their parking lot, and I guess Publix will take a hit as well.

Well, that sheds a different light on things.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by MattCW

You obviously don't ever go through there, taking away one lane entirely would be catastrophic for the area.

I am through that area regularly, grew up not far from there, and have some of my best friends that live less than a half mile from this road. Can we expect the same sort of catastrophe we saw after lanes were lost from North Ave near Ponce City Market? Or after Ponce in downtown Decatur was downsized?

At least this is getting you increased transit capacity. You can't complain about the lack of transit and complain about issues with the streetcar being stuck in traffic and not be willing to give up Right-of-Way for dedicated transit lanes.