Successful Second Open House of Napier Avenue Pedestrian & Bicycle Plan

PUBLIC WEIGHS IN: REDESIGNING NAPIER AVENUE

SUCCESSFUL SECOND OPEN HOUSE OF NAPIER AVENUE PEDESTRIAN & BICYCLE PLAN

After a well-attended public open house meeting last Monday, May 21st at the Napier Parkview Baptist Church, the Napier Avenue Pedestrian & Bicycle planning team is providing additional public input opportunities.

An online survey presenting renderings of the four different concepts for redesigning Napier Avenue is currently available. The options vary from keeping the corridor as it is today or adding sidewalks, bike lanes, or a multiuse path. Those taking the survey get the chance to know what it’s like to be a city planner, weighing trade-offs to select the options they like the most. Each option has its own pros and cons, such as costs, right-of-way acquisition needs, impact on traffic, and levels of safety and comfort.

The survey is available online at napieravenue.org. Paper surveys and materials presented during the open house are available during regular business hours at the following locations:

Benton Charter Township Hall 1725 Territorial Road Benton Harbor, MI 49022

Saint Joseph Charter Township Hall 3000 Washington Ave. St. Joseph, MI 49085

Surveys need to be completed online or turned in to either township hall by Friday, June 1, 2018.

Details regarding the third and final public open house as part of this planning process will be announced once determined. This meeting will present the final recommendations of the Napier Avenue Pedestrian & Bicycle Plan.

About SWMPC. The Southwest Michigan Planning Commission (SWMPC) is one of fourteen state recognized regional planning governmental non-profit organizations in Michigan. The organization was enabled by state legislation (the Regional Planning Act, 1945 PA 281) and formally created in 1971 by the three counties it serves, Berrien, Cass, and Van Buren. SWMPC is a regional planning resource staffed with professional regional planners and is designed to be responsive to the planning needs of our region. SWMPC is the USDOT and MDOT recognized Metropolitan Planning Organization for the

Twin Cities (Benton Harbor-St. Joseph) and the Niles-Buchanan-Cass County Area Transportation Studies, as well as the rural and small urban transportation Regional Planning Agency for Berrien, Cass, and Van Buren Counties. SWMPC is the state designated area-wide water quality management planning agency under the Clean Water Act, and the SWMPC leads and participates in watershed management planning. SWMPC is the EDA designated Economic Development District for those same three counties.