Creating safer turns

Drivers approaching the intersection of Wallace Kneeland Boulevard and Shelton Springs Road hoping to make a left-hand turn know they face a challenge, especially when school is about to begin or has just ended at Shelton High School and Oakland Bay Junior High.

The City of Shelton has been proposing building a roundabout there for years and has about $1.6 million in grants earmarked for it.

At a work session on Sept. 10, the Shelton City Council and staff members discussed a quicker and less expensive interim fix: new left-turn signal lights, at a cost of about $20,000.

Public Works Director Jay Harris explained, "Right now, there's a lot of left-turn backups there when schools are letting out, so in the next probably three months, we hope to have left-hand signal heads up, with a flashing yellow arrow and (drivers) go when there's a gap and then the sensor recognizes the cars are cued up, they're still sitting there, it will give you a green cycle, and turn red for the through lanes."

He added, "It will be a big upgrade to buy us some time here until we can figure out if it's best to do a roundabout there."

A roundabout at the intersection will cost about $4 million, Harris said. "We're at $1.6 right now, so we have a ways to go."

Harris said he wants the city to have a roundabout design in place for the intersection "and be shovel ready and then seek grant opportunities for the roundabout."

"That turn signal is going to help a lot there," said Mayor Eric Onisko. "I mean, that's basically a red light, left turn, one maybe two cars, and they're running red lights, by the way, to get through there during peak hours."

"It will be a safety enhancement," said City Manager Mark Ziegler. "It's good to have structures in place that can be altered to meet these needs,"

Harris said the upgrade won't be difficult.

The signal boxes are at the bottom of the poles and city employees can do much of the work, he said. The city will then bring in a control cabinet expert to install new controller parts and set the timings, he said.

SCJ Alliance prepared a conceptual roundabout site plan and cost estimate for the intersection. In 2021, the city secured a state grant for the design and part of the construction costs. The city received an additional $1 million in grant funding for the project.

The study session was interupted by a Zoom boom, where an uninvited guest shares offensive language or images. In a statement, the city wrote, "The Shelton City Council apologizes for the hurtful and offensive video and statements made at the Sept. 19 study session; a phenomenon known as 'Zoom booming.' The City Council does not condone this activity and those that promote hate, intolerance and bigotry. We are committed to making Shelton a safe, inclusive and welcoming place for all. The City will make every effort to ensure that these actions are not commonplace in the council chambers."

"We're taking measure so that doesn't happen again," Ziegler said at Tuesday's council meeting.