Streetscape project on Columbia Ave. questioned
By Mindy Tate. Williamson Herald Editor
mtate@williamsonherald.com
It appears that Franklin aldermen may reverse the order of proposed Streetscape projects, allowing Hillsboro Road to leap frog over a ready-to-bid Columbia Avenue project over concerns that the Columbia Avenue section is more about cosmetics than infrastructure.
During a work session on Monday, aldermen were discussing the viability of the creation of a special assessment district or a tax increment financing mechanism to pay for a portion of the $4 million section along Columbia Avenue from near the Five Points intersection south to Fowlkes Street.
In recent months, aldermen have debated how much of the proposed 20-year project is infrastructure related while preservationists and economic development proponents point to figures from consultant John Grossman of EG&G that show in most areas less than 15 percent of the costs are associated with aesthetics.
Work is to be completed this year on a Streetscape improvements on Fifth Avenue from Five Points to Highway 96 West and along commercial areas of Third Avenue North.
“We have talked about the entire project, not just Columbia Avenue in terms of improving infrastructure and on Third and Fifth, there has been a pretty large stormwater component, sewer component and water component,” Alderman Ann Petersen said of multi-phase Streetscape project.
“For Columbia Avenue, I went in and looked at the plan. There is virtually no improvement in infrastructure here in terms of there is basically nothing on water or stormwater in this,” she said. “Basically it looks like beautification. You can say what you want about it, but it is. I also realize we are spending $4 million on something that has an appraised value of $10 million.
“I think the improvements there for a huge part are enhancements to individual properties. This certainly indicates to me that the property owners should pay for some of this,” she said. “In fact, a lot of it, after I looked at it, had to do with if you had someone who had bought the property and was going to redevelop it, this is what they would have done.
“I have to say the people who are going to get the benefit from this are the individual property owners,” she continued.
“When you go to Hillsboro Road, you are talking about stormwater and infrastructure things. I feel very strongly we need to have some sort of assessment district. If you look at what comes out of a TIF district, it is miniscule there.”
She was not alone in her feelings about the Columbia Avenue project.
“There is another person that agrees with that,” said Alderman Clyde Barnhill. “Hillsboro Road and Columbia Highway are not the same.”
Alderman Dana McLendon also agreed with Petersen and reminded other aldermen he has long been a proponent for Hillsboro Road improvements, both in the commercial district and the residential area near Franklin High School.
“The question of how to do an assessment district leads me to the question of whether or not to do this project in this order, or at this time or maybe at all” McLendon said. “If the difference between the Columbia Avenue project and Hillsboro Road as Alderman Petersen explained it, then maybe we should reorder them because I have long supported the Streetscape project, especially the one that runs along Hillsboro Road, largely because of infrastructure improvements that are needed there.”
Capital Improvements Project Executive Dave Parker said neither section of Streetscape has a schedule for construction, although the Columbia Avenue section is ready to be bid, while Hillsboro Road is not. He said that section might be able to be bid in mid summer.
Posted on: 4/30/2009
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