The Town of Plainfield held a meeting Thursday, February 26 to show the community the plans it is making to improve infrastructure, the greenways system, and other aspects of the town. An estimated 200 people came to the Guilford Township Community Center at Hummel Park to view the drawings. They also had the opportunity to ask questions and make comments.
"We were really pleased with the huge turnout we had," said Robin Brandgard, Town Council President. "We received a lot of good feedback that will help us as we go forward."
Traffic Circle at Hadley Road and Center Street
People who live around the intersection of Hadley Road and Center Street and those who pass through the intersection regularly flocked to the display to see how the new traffic circle would affect them.
"Essentially the traffic is too much for the stop sign, especially at particular times of the day when it backs up," said Don McGillem, traffic consultant to the Town. "Two options were considered, a signalized intersection with turn lanes, and a roundabout. With a signal, we'd need to create both right turn lanes and left turn lanes to handle the type of traffic we have there, and there is a tendency with intersections of that type to have accidents that can be severe. A roundabout uses less space and people must go into the roundabout with reduced speed, which tends to reduce the severity of accidents. Since the traffic backs up only in the morning and in the evening, this was a good candidate for a roundabout. Initially there may be some fender-benders until people get used to them, but experience with traffic circles in other towns show that people adjust to them quickly. There will be some stack up in traffic during peek hours, but it will still flow, which is better than the delays we have now."
As a part of the new roundabout, the town will widen the roads as they approach the circle and put islands in the middle of each approach to delineate the two lanes of traffic. The circle itself will have two lanes. Drivers are to slow as they enter the roundabout, yielding to traffic already there, and then continue around the circle until they find their exit. Officials are confident drivers will quickly get the hang of it.
The Town hopes to begin construction in June with relocating the utilities and moving the lift station from Crystal Bay to a spot south of the intersection. The lift station will also be improved to handle the increased flow from restaurants at S.R. 267. Primary construction of the roundabout could begin shortly after the Fourth of July. Attendees at the meeting spoke in support of the idea to close the intersection and "hyperfix" it rather than keep it open for limited traffic and drag out the schedule. Officials want to get the intersection open again before the school year starts.
New Greenway Paths
In 2000 the town was notified that it had been selected to receive an $800,000 grant to provide additional greenways paths. The money, which becomes available this year, will be used to connect areas of the town with the parks system.
At the meeting residents were shown how those connections would be made. One path will run the length of Stanley Road to the Hendricks Regional medical building at Southfield Drive. A pathway bridge will be built over Clarks Creek to make this possible. Another path will connect the high school sidewalk on Stafford Road to Friendship Gardens via Longfellow. A third will run along Hadley Road west of Center Street and cross White Lick Creek via a new pedestrian bridge to join the Hummel Park pathways on the back side of the park. Finally, a fourth will join Franklin Park with older areas of town east of the park. The ditch will be closed in with pipe and the pathway will run along the top of it to East Street, where it will run north from the canal to the railroad easement. Later, the town plans to pave the railroad easement all the way from that point to North Perry Road.
Future Greenways Trails Proposed and Traffic Along South Center
"Spring Fling" 15K Race, 5K Fitness Walk Coming April 10
Plainfield's "Spring Fling" race this year will be held in April and will be a 15K race. In the past, the race had been in May at a length of 8K.
"We wanted to make it more of a lead-in to the Mini-Marathon, which is why we moved it to April and made it longer," said Steven Huckstep, race director. "However, the fun run and fitness walk will be 5K, for those who are more interested in shorter distances."
Also new this year, Huckstep said, is the location of the starting line. Previously held at Hummel Park, this year's race will start from Plainfield High School and will use the town's greenways and trails system. Race time is 8:00 a.m., with registration from 6:30 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. The non-competitive Fitness Walk will be also have the same hours of registration but will start at 8:20. Judges will not be available for the Fitness Walk.
"This is the 14th year for the race," said Huckstep. "Last year was our biggest year, but we hope to have even more participating this year."
Through April 5th, registration for both the 15K race and the fun run will be $18.00 and includes a t-shirt. For those who do not want a t-shirt, registration is $15, but only through April 9th. After that all registration, including the day of the event, is $20. Entry forms are available at the Runners Forum website, www.runnersforum.com, or by calling the store at 317-844-1558.
Sponsors include Hendricks Regional Health, ADESA, Banning Engineering, Chick-fil-A, Bike Line, Reebok, Piazza Produce, Lincoln Bank, Plainfield Parks Department, Mitch's Ace, the End Result, and the Runners Forum.
Proceeds from the Spring Fling will benefit the Fellowship of Christian Athletes at Plainfield's high school and middle school.
Yard Waste Site Opens March 8
Plainfield's Yard Waste Facility, operated by the West Central Solid Waste District, will re-open for the 2004 season at 501 North Vine Street. Hours for the facility are 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Mondays, Fridays, and Saturdays.
The site takes yard waste such as grass, leaves, twigs, and branches up to 8 inches in diameter, and is for residential use only. Items that are prohibited include sod, soil, or stumps. There is a charge for using the Yard Waste Facility, and prices vary according to quantity. For information about pricing or what can be dropped off, call the site at 838-9332 after March 8th and talk to the attendant. The facility is open through November.
