Opinions vary on traffic solutions for Sisters

While the majority of Sisters residents appear to oppose plans to build a Hood Avenue/Main Avenue couplet, they have different opinions on how to best preserve the character of downtown.

Traffic officials reminded the citizens at a city-hosted public workshop on Monday, June 21, that traffic on Cascade Avenue backs up during peak hours in summer months and during special events. Those back-ups will increase over the years if Sisters sees expected population growth and grows as a resort destination, traffic officials said.

But Hood Avenue and Main Avenue hold a much higher capacity for traffic, said Howard Stein of CTS Engineers, a consultant for the city.

Stein told the visitors at the workshop that in the past year, Cascade Avenue averaged 11,200 trips per day in both directions. On peak traffic days in August, it averages 16,700 trips per day.

In comparison, Stein said Hood Avenue and Main Avenue averaged only 3,000 trips per day for the last year and 5,000 during peak hours in August.

"So you see Hood and Main have significantly more capacity," Stein said.

Rudi Booher, owner of Papandrea's Pizza and Espresso Junction on Cascade Avenue, said that he was surprised to hear Cascade Avenue has so much traffic.

"When I saw those numbers up there, I was very shocked and I've lived here seven years," Booher said. "Those truckers are very happy when they come into town (on Cascade Avenue). They're not complaining about traffic."

Booher told The Nugget he hopes the couplet is not built because it would "devastate" his business -- and others.

"It's not just about our business," Booher said. "If it happened to someone else on the other side of town, I'd be just as opposed. (The City of) Newberg put a couplet in their quaint shopping area and now the people just want to get through town. No one stops. But now, (in Sisters), people like downtown."

Not every business owner agrees. Jan Daggett was one of the few voices at the workshop to defend couplet plans.

Daggett, who owns The Jewel at Cascade Avenue and Ash Street, said she wants to see less traffic on Cascade Avenue. She compared the couplet to the time she said citizens were opposed to building Barclay Park on Ash Street.

"Finally those who were opposed to the park like it now because it was done well," Daggett said. "There are a lot of bad examples of couplets, like in Redmond and Lebanon and Newport. I went to earlier meetings about the couplet and there were a lot more details on how they would slow down traffic on all the streets -- not just send them through.

"I like the idea of taking 90 cars on one street and making 30 cars on each street," she said. "I'm not in favor of making it easier and faster to get through town. I like the right angles to get to the couplet because it will slow traffic down."

Eugene Trahern, a local resident, offered detailed plans and drawings of his proposal to the Couplet Advisory Committee, which has been working with the city to design the couplet. His proposal includes adding left-turn lanes on Cascade Avenue, eliminating parallel parking on Cascade Avenue, adding pedestrian safety islands and bike lanes and upgrading the street with new sidewalks. He said taking away parallel parking would eliminate 74 parking spaces, which he said is equivalent to 1.15 spaces per business.

Peter Russell of ODOT said that when ODOT looked at plans to enhance Cascade Avenue years ago, business owners were opposed to losing parking spaces.