SCHOOL CONCERNS DISCUSSED

SCHOOL CONCERNS DISCUSSED Width of road and possible speed bumps talked about

+ click to enlarge News staff photo by Tara Vocino School Committee member Hank Mason, right, and others look over the traffic pattern and road layout planned for the new elementary school on South Road during a Building Committee meeting on Tuesday. Tara Vocino Reporter TEMPLETON  The Elementary School Building Committee voted to authorize the submission of the design documents for the new school to the Massachusetts School Building Authority and to authorize the team to begin the construction document phase while discussing neighbors’ previous concerns on Tuesday. Owners Project Manager Tim Alix, of Colliers International, said there was a good turnout at the public information session on March 23, and he talked about some of the questions that were raised at that information session, including traffic patterns and the layout of the roads. Civil Engineer Peter Glick, also of Symmes, Maini and McKee Associates, discussed the traffic patterns that were inquired about at the public information session. Glick said there will be a 5-foot bike lane on the opposite side of the road from the school, an 8-foot wide shoulder for emergency cars and an 11-foot wide travel lane for cars to pass through on South and Wellington roads, which will be made one way. Cars coming down Wellington Road turning onto South Road will notice a stop sign. Glick said both streets will have ample parking for large events. “There will be an 8-foot shoulder,” Glick said. “As long as they’re not blocking people’s driveways, they can park there.” Glick said it gives the appearance that South Road coming from Hubbardston into town is narrower, where the first reaction is to often to slow down. Selectman Diane Haley Brook’s concern was that people fly up that road, going 50 mph, and having the appearance of a narrower road doesn’t solve the problem. “There aren’t any street lights,” Haley Brooks said. “That’s a hazard, especially at night. Coming down the road around the corner, why would it need to be narrower?” Glick said that speed bumps encouraging people to slow down is an option. School Committee member Hank Mason asked about the sign installations. Project Management Director Joel G. Seeley, of Symmes, Maini and McKee Associates, said there will be signs installed on South and Wellington roads with school zone flashers that include solar panels to alert drivers of a school zone. One of the concerns that Haley Brooks brought up was for the playground removal and relocation. Seeley said that the playground will be taken offsite at the start of the project. The foundation will be demolished and removed, and a new foundation will be put in place. Alix has reached out to several companies for its moving services for the classroom contents. Potential companies are: ABC Moving and Storage out of Leominster; Castine Moving and Storage out of Athol; and Hartman Relocation Services Inc. out of Leominster.