Downtown Sisters to get a facelift

Downtown Sisters will get new, wider sidewalks, more "bulbouts" and curbcuts, pavers, and reverse angle parking as part of a $2.6 million urban renewal project.

Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles representatives met with the Sisters Village Association on Wednesday, February 24 along with representatives of the City of Sisters, Public Works Director Brad Grimm and Coordinator Paul Bertagna to discuss the project.

"Two years ago this project did not look feasible unless business owners paid for it," Bertagna stated. "City Manager Eileen Stein went to battle with legislature and got Senator Chris Telfer's support. Telfer got us the first $1 million toward the $2.6 million project."

ODOT Project Leader Mike Darling, along with community liason Rex Holloway, spoke with business owners about plans to improve not only the look of Sisters' downtown core, but it's safety and walkability. Most of the improvements are to Cascade Avenue between Larch and Pine streets, but widening the corner of Locust Street and Barclay Avenue is also part of the project.

"This project is appealing to funders because part of the funding is already in place," Darling stated.

This spring people will see road repair on Cascade Avenue, filling the ruts between Pine and Larch streets. ODOT says the work will be done by Memorial Day and will only be done on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday - no weekends. They anticipate it will take two evenings.

The balance of the project will be done in 2012/13, widening streets, adding bulbouts and ADA ramps at corners, increasing pedestrian safety. ODOT staff assured business owners those improvements would not be made during the summer months between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

"As merchants," John Leavitt said, "we want to be sure we are going to be here when it is done. What do we care how it looks if we're not here?"

Business owners expressed concerns that bulb-outs will block traffic.

"A key purpose of the improvements," Darling stated, "is to make it safe for pedestrians."

The bulbouts shorten the crossing distance from 48 feet curb to curb to 32 feet, shortening wait time for stopped traffic.

"Any time you do multi-modal transportation, there is not one perfect solution. You have everything from big trucks, wide loads, bicycles, pedestrians, cars and everything else," Darling said. "The most vulnerable are the pedestrians."

Pavers are currently being considered along Cascade Avenue, but whether it is pavers or concrete or some combination thereof will be up to the city and its residents.

A heated discussion developed regarding reverse diagonal parking on Main Avenue and Larch Street, with nearly everyone expressing concerns about the new style of parking. Those that have tried it were not happy backing into a space.

"The reverse angle parking came from the bicycle plan with the TSP (Transportation System Plan). There are several perks to the back-in parking, key being increased visibility when pulling out of a parking space, virtually reducing accidents to zero," public works director Grimm stated.

It was felt there would be a period of adjustment to the new parking method, but that, overall, reasons in favor exceeded the drawbacks.

There is a reverse-angle parking area on the corner of Larch and Main where drivers can try their skill at back-in parking.

Several team meetings and design meetings are planned over the next two years. ODOT wants the business community and the public to be part of the facelift and will hold public meetings toward that end. For more information about the planned improvements in downtown Sisters visit: http://www.oregon.gov/ODOT/HWY/REGION4/US20_Cascade_Improvements_Sisters/US20_Cascade_Improvements_Sisters.shtml