A resolution permitting the temporary closure of Chestnut Street has been moved back to the full Jefferson City Council after discussion at the Public Works and Planning Committee meeting.
At the committee meeting Thursday, members approved moving the resolution to the full council by a 4-1 vote, with 4th Ward Councilman Glen Costales casting the sole opposing vote.
The resolution had been issued to council members just before Monday's City Council meeting. At that time, council members decided to discuss the resolution at the committee level before bringing it to the full council.
The resolution, drafted mostly by 3rd Ward Councilman Bob Scrivner and 2nd Ward Councilman J. Rick Mihalevich, does not vacate Chestnut Street, as the original bill sought to do, but does allow temporary closures of the street from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Scrivner and Mihalevich said the resolution took a lot of compromise from all involved to get done.
"There's been a lot of give and take," Scrivner said of the issue. "We've tried to come to a solution."
The council had put a bill to vacate Chestnut Street - from Dunklin Street to Atchison Street to allow Lincoln University to create a pedestrian plaza - on the informal calendar at the Oct. 19 meeting, after 54 people spoke on the issue. Of those who spoke, 36 were in favor of vacating the street and 18 were against. Of the 36 in support, a majority were either students or employees of Lincoln University, while a majority of those opposed were residents of the neighborhood.
The resolution states staff will:
• Engage in discussions with the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization and incorporate the Clark Avenue interchange and corridor improvements in its planned 2016-2017 study;
• Allow closure of Chestnut Street, between east Dunklin Street and Atchison Street, from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday "so long as Lincoln University is agreeable to installing a barrier to traffic approved by the city's public safety department and to open and close the barrier at the appointed times;"
• Enact safety measures deemed appropriate to improve safety in the areas where traffic would likely divert to if Chestnut Street is closed;
• Work with Lincoln University on a plan to enhance public safety on the campus, including a plan to address enforcement of the no-parking zone on Chestnut Street. (Though there is no parking allowed on parts of Chestnut Street near the Scruggs University Center, cars are often parked there. The city has difficulty enforcing parking regulations along the street with the largely student population.)
The resolution also states nothing would prevent the council from re-opening Chestnut.
Mihalevich said the Public Safety Committee will meet Tuesday morning to discuss a possible ordinance to give enforcement powers to Lincoln University police in order to address the parking issues on Chestnut Street. Lincoln University Police Chief Bill Nelson said the department would be ready and willing to take over those responsibilities.
But, Nelson said, he also has concerns about the temporary closures. Installing a gate will be costly, he said, and that investment is harder to justify without a full vacation of the street.
Sheila Gassner, executive director of LU Facilities and Planning, said the temporary closure is at least moving in the right direction.
"Sometimes it takes baby steps to get where you want to go," Gassner said.
Scrivner noted further changes to the resolution could be made before its taken up by the full council, adding he hopes neighborhood representatives and LU officials meet and offer recommendations to the council.