Sandy neighbors seek to derail TRAX park and ride
SANDY — LeeAnn Evans accepts that she can't stop oncoming trains.
But she's not afraid to stand in the way of cars or buses.
Evans and several of her neighbors are hoping to derail the Utah Transit Authority's plans for a park-and-ride lot to serve the now-under-construction TRAX station at 11400 South and about 400 East.
They say putting a parking lot in an otherwise residential area would be detrimental to the neighborhood.
"The things we're concerned most about are the increase in traffic and crime, especially with the amount of children we have in this area," Evans said.
She and her neighbors will have a chance to make their case to the Sandy City Council on Tuesday. The group has appealed the Jan. 6 decision of the Planning Commission that gave UTA the green light to build the park and ride.
"We cannot prevent UTA from having a (TRAX) stop there," Evans said, "but we can have some input on if there's a park-and-ride lot there or not."
Neighbors have reluctantly surrendered to the reality that trains will be picking up and dropping off passengers near their homes. UTA owns the right of way along the so-called Draper Transit Corridor, and locating a station at 11400 South is the transit authority's prerogative.
That shifts the battle to the grassy field just west of the construction site, where neighbors' voices could play a role in how passengers get to and from the station.
UTA owns most of the eastern half of that field and plans to build a 222-stall parking lot there to support the TRAX station. It would become a 248-stall park and ride if UTA acquires a section of the property owned by Sandy.
Unlike its construction of the station, UTA needed city approval in the form of a conditional-use permit to build the park and ride. In January, the Sandy Planning Commission unanimously granted that approval, subject to a laundry list of conditions meant to address neighbors' concerns.
Neighbors' decision to appeal that ruling sends the issue to the City Council.
"We get to make our presentation about why we think the Planning Commission failed to see that a parking lot would be detrimental to our neighborhood," Evans said.
In addition to concerns about crime and traffic, neighbors are worried about what the park and ride will mean to their property values, she said.
UTA spokesman Gerry Carpenter said the transit authority is mindful of the neighbors' concerns and is doing its best to address them.
"The goal and desire is to build something that not only works for the purposes of our regional transit system but also is something the neighborhood is comfortable with," Carpenter said.
Several design elements of the park and ride have been included specifically to address neighbors' concerns — including a bus loop that shares space with patron parking and keeps buses away from homes to the north, he said.
A large landscaped buffer for surrounding homes also is planned, as requested by residents, Carpenter said.
If the City Council sides with residents and determines the Planning Commission erred in its decision, UTA may have to settle for what Carpenter called "kiss and ride" — a place where people can be dropped off at the train station but not park.
But that would result in a loss of ridership and damage what Carpenter says is "an important part of our regional transportation system."
The Draper Transit Corridor is a 3.8-mile extension of the TRAX line that currently ends at 10000 South. The total cost of the project is estimated at $194 million. UTA has been recommended to receive a federal grant that would cover roughly $124 million of that price tag.
But the project is part of the $3.2 billion the Obama administration has committed to transit projects nationwide.
If Congress opts to trim that funding, the project would be delayed until another funding source is secured, Carpenter said. If all goes according to plan, the Draper line could be operational as soon as 2013.
Tuesday's City Council meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at Sandy City Hall, 10000 Centennial Parkway.
But she's not afraid to stand in the way of cars or buses.
Evans and several of her neighbors are hoping to derail the Utah Transit Authority's plans for a park-and-ride lot to serve the now-under-construction TRAX station at 11400 South and about 400 East.
They say putting a parking lot in an otherwise residential area would be detrimental to the neighborhood.
Tom Smart, Deseret News
Construction at a new UTA TRAX station at 114000 South and 450 East Tuesday, April 26, 2011, in Sandy.
She and her neighbors will have a chance to make their case to the Sandy City Council on Tuesday. The group has appealed the Jan. 6 decision of the Planning Commission that gave UTA the green light to build the park and ride.
"We cannot prevent UTA from having a (TRAX) stop there," Evans said, "but we can have some input on if there's a park-and-ride lot there or not."
Neighbors have reluctantly surrendered to the reality that trains will be picking up and dropping off passengers near their homes. UTA owns the right of way along the so-called Draper Transit Corridor, and locating a station at 11400 South is the transit authority's prerogative.
That shifts the battle to the grassy field just west of the construction site, where neighbors' voices could play a role in how passengers get to and from the station.
UTA owns most of the eastern half of that field and plans to build a 222-stall parking lot there to support the TRAX station. It would become a 248-stall park and ride if UTA acquires a section of the property owned by Sandy.
Unlike its construction of the station, UTA needed city approval in the form of a conditional-use permit to build the park and ride. In January, the Sandy Planning Commission unanimously granted that approval, subject to a laundry list of conditions meant to address neighbors' concerns.
Neighbors' decision to appeal that ruling sends the issue to the City Council.
"We get to make our presentation about why we think the Planning Commission failed to see that a parking lot would be detrimental to our neighborhood," Evans said.
In addition to concerns about crime and traffic, neighbors are worried about what the park and ride will mean to their property values, she said.
UTA spokesman Gerry Carpenter said the transit authority is mindful of the neighbors' concerns and is doing its best to address them.
"The goal and desire is to build something that not only works for the purposes of our regional transit system but also is something the neighborhood is comfortable with," Carpenter said.
Several design elements of the park and ride have been included specifically to address neighbors' concerns — including a bus loop that shares space with patron parking and keeps buses away from homes to the north, he said.
A large landscaped buffer for surrounding homes also is planned, as requested by residents, Carpenter said.
If the City Council sides with residents and determines the Planning Commission erred in its decision, UTA may have to settle for what Carpenter called "kiss and ride" — a place where people can be dropped off at the train station but not park.
But that would result in a loss of ridership and damage what Carpenter says is "an important part of our regional transportation system."
The Draper Transit Corridor is a 3.8-mile extension of the TRAX line that currently ends at 10000 South. The total cost of the project is estimated at $194 million. UTA has been recommended to receive a federal grant that would cover roughly $124 million of that price tag.
But the project is part of the $3.2 billion the Obama administration has committed to transit projects nationwide.
If Congress opts to trim that funding, the project would be delayed until another funding source is secured, Carpenter said. If all goes according to plan, the Draper line could be operational as soon as 2013.
Tuesday's City Council meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at Sandy City Hall, 10000 Centennial Parkway.
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