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Delmar, one being only for a right turn and only one lane was needed for westbound <br />Delmar traffic coming out of the roundabout. <br /> <br />Jeff Hales, 7471 Kingsbury, University City, MO <br />As a member on the Traffic Commission, Mr. Hales noted the Traffic Commission made <br />their unanimous recommendation to reopen Trinity following a lengthy presentation, <br />numerous questions, citizen participation; in which there was no support for the closure. <br />He spoke in regard to the concern regarding the sight distance for pedestrians suggesting <br />that the crossing could be moved away from the corner. Mr. Hales stated that Mr. Wilson <br />has failed to provide any substantive information qualifying his assertions regarding <br />safety concerns and accident data for the two months that Trinity remained open after the <br />roundabout was completed. Mr. Hales asked Council to listen to the audio tape from the <br />Traffic Commission’s November meeting or allow the commission an opportunity to <br />present Council with a recommendation that represented their views. <br /> <br />COUNCIL’S COMMENTS <br />Dr. Carr questioned why the Traffic Commission’s recommendation to open Trinity Ave. <br />was not presented to Council. Dr. Carr stated there has been no mention of the problems <br />with ingress into the southern part of Trinity and the backup into the circle. She stated <br />that although she would tend to support the reopening because of the lack of egress on <br />the north side of Trinity and the problems associated with ingress on the southern side of <br />Trinity when there are events at COCA and the United Methodist Church. She wanted to <br />know how she could ask a citizen to serve on one of these boards or commissions when <br />their input lacked consideration. <br /> Dr. Carr asked to have a copy of her detailed response added to the minutes. <br /> <br />Mr. Glickert stated that he had some concerns with the fact that the Traffic Commission <br />had recommended the reopening of Trinity, and that it does not appear as though Council <br />has been presented with a sufficient amount of quantitative data. He stated that the north <br />side of Trinity is certainly different than the south side and therefore Council is looking at <br />two very different personalities. He moved to amend the original motion and requested <br />that this item be postponed until the next Council meeting to allow time for further review. <br />The motion was seconded by Mr. Sharpe. <br /> <br />Mr. Kraft stated that in his opinion there are two issues. The explicit issue that is open for <br />discussion is whether Trinity should or should not be closed, and the issue implied by his <br />colleague is whether government can basically be trusted to do anything, which is a <br />popular anti-Washington, sometimes Tea Party point of view. <br /> <br />Dr. Carr called for a point of order and stated that the Tea Party has no place in this <br />discussion. Mayor Welsch stated that she would not support Dr. Carr’s point of order <br />since her belief is that Mr. Kraft was talking about his perception that some actions are <br />similar to the Tea Party. <br /> <br />Mr. Kraft stated Council needed to differentiate the issues of the Trinity closure from the <br />general mistrust of government. He stated that the people who work for University City <br />are well qualified professionals with years of experience. So while Council can disagree <br />with these professionals, it is the mood of distrust that he found disconcerting. He stated <br />that Council has a recommendation from the Traffic Commission to leave Trinity open, a <br />recommendation from the engineering staff to close Trinity, and a statement from the <br />church who wants Trinity to remain open to alleviate congestion in the roundabout. He <br />has also heard from some of his constituents at Bais Abraham, as well as joggers from <br />3 <br /> <br /> <br />