Clear Lake City Council Approves Controversial Street Project

Wed April 09 2008
Posted Apr 9, 2008
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By Cole Mathisen KIMT News 3 Folks who live along a scenic street were fuming over a final vote. Clear Lake plans on turning an eight block stretch of South Shore Drive from 4th avenue to 12th avenue into a one way. The city will also improve the underground sewer and water pipes. It will also add bike trails on both sides. But people living along the stretch are opposed to the project, mainly because they will be charged for the improvements. Some could end up paying more than ten thousand dollars. Monday night the Clear Lake City Council voted unanimously in favor of moving forward with the South Shore Drive project. Some people living along the street aren't happy about picking up part of the bill. Judy Crawford is one of many people living in Clear Lake who have a permanent home somewhere else. "I like the community, it was close to home, it was very relaxing for me to come here, and so it was an opportunity to make an investment and that's what I did," she said. A few months ago Crawford got a letter saying she was going to be assessed for improvements to the street, water main, and sewer in front of her house in Clear Lake. "Well, I definitely had to sit down, It was over $10,000, my assessment," she said. She did what half of the 130 plus homeowners here did and objected to city's assessment, but Clear Lake's City Council is unanimously approving it anyway. Now homeowners on South Shore want the city to change its policy when it comes to assessing people for city projects. "It's the way it's always been, but there have been 600 parties by this process and so to reverse it at this time becomes a very large and challenging process," Clear Lake City Councilman Terry Unsworth. He is trying to assure homeowners that the projects ultimate price tag will probably be lower than expected. He wants the street portion 25 percent lower or else. "I will not vote to approve the final assessment schedule," he said. Yet there is still time before crews break ground on South Shore Drive. Crawford is hoping the city will change its policy. "Draw the line in the sand now, make a choice, what are we going to do, have more public hearings on it, maybe put it on the ballot," she said. The homeowners along South Shore Drive are paying for about 40 percent of the total cost of the project. The federal government is kicking a half million dollars in as well. The next council meeting on the South Shore Drive project is set for late June. That's when council members will make some final street construction decisions.