Road may be built through campus
Lacee Starr Horton
Issue date: 4/7/08 Section: Campus
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Until the university was moved to its current location in the late 1970s, Kearsley Street existed as a fully functioning roadway, and today The Kearsley Reconnection Project hopes to revive the downtown area to the bustling "Historic Flint" that has since become a memory.
By it becoming an easier and quicker route between the universities and The Flint Cultural Center, supporters believe the move to construct the street will direct more business downtown, as well as encourage students to visit the cultural centers.
Although plans have not been fully finalized, projected models show that the expansion will be multi-faceted, incorporating well-lit bike paths on either side as well as aesthetic values such as ornate shrubbery and seating. If approved, the privately funded project, estimated to cost between $1.5 and $1.9 million, will be a 1,200 to 1,300-foot section of roadway and would be slated for completion in late fall. With the new housing opening in August, concerns were raised about the safety of walking students.
"First and foremost the issue of pedestrian and vehicular safety is something that everyone is concerned about," said Assistant Vice Chancellor Bill Webb.
Discussion on how to regulate safety along the street led administration to consider various forms of speed-reducing components, including speed bumps and speed tables. However, as professor of biochemistry Robert Stach noted, "when a car comes along it hits that bump no matter how fast its going, which sends vibrations through the building. They are going to be periodic, not at regular intervals."
Stach said that because everyone drives differently and does not always follow posted speed requirements, the effects on the equipment in MSB could be detrimental and damaging.
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