Township asks for collaboration on Crawford Road safety
In order for lights and sidewalks to be installed on Crawford Road, several entities must collaborate.
Following the hit and run that killed a Macomb freshman in November 2015, Union Charter Township Trustee Bryan Mielke brought up safety measures he said need to be taken on the poorly-lit road which has no sidewalks.
Ryan Tsatsos, 17, was killed while walking back from Deerfield Village just after midnight. He was wearing a red jacket and black athletic shorts.
Since then, the township has discussed ways to make the road more safe, but Mielke said it might be a long process because several municipalities will need to get involved. Mielke brought up the lack of lighting on Crawford Road initially, saying sometimes tragedy is the impetus for action.
"My hope is that Ryan didn't die for nothing, that this helps bring the many parties to the table to discuss how we can solve this and how we can find ways to pay for it," he said.
The project becomes more complicated when deciding which entity is responsible for Crawford Road. Aside from four homes under township jurisdiction, the area on the east side is owned by Central Michigan University and the city of Mount Pleasant. The west side of the road belongs to the township. However, before anyone installs anything on the road, it needs to go through the Isabella County Road Commission, which owns the easement on either side. This process does not take long, said commission engineer Pat Gaffney.
"They would have to submit plans of what kind of lighting they want to install," he said. "The plans are then reviewed and possibly approved. Then a permit is issued."
Mielke said the commission has been supportive of a possible project on Crawford. This, he said, will be the easy part of the project. The more challenging aspect is paying for it. Collaborating with CMU, the city and the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe is what Mielke has been focusing on. He said coming up with funding will come later.
"None of these entities have this budgeted right now, but the fact that it is such a safety issue becomes a much higher priority in my book," he said. "I'm trying to convince others that it's also a priority for our community."
After getting everyone together, Mielke said all parties would need to take engineering costs into consideration. Crawford Road does not have roadway shoulders, so putting a sidewalk on either side would pose an engineering challenge.
Collaboration with other municipalities is nothing new to CMU. In 2015, the university committed to partner with the city on a lighting project north of campus, as well as a roundabout on Washington and Bellows streets. The city's reasoning for these projects is partly pedestrian safety. Mielke said the township hasn't collaborated as much with the university because CMU is located in Mount Pleasant city limits. Still, Mielke sees partnerships with both the city and CMU as a benefit to all.
"The city and township have a very strong relationship, and I'm proud of that," he said. "We need to continue to make bridges with Central, because we do border with a lot of Central property. This hasn't happened as long as I've been a trustee, but I think it can now."
Even if all parties want to be part of the process, a lighting and sidewalk project could take years. The township started a sidewalk project in 2012 on Bluegrass Road, and the sidewalks are currently being installed. Several other roads, including Isabella Road, are concerns to Mielke as well. However, he said because the city, Tribe, university, township and county have all signed off on a non-motorized travel plan, it may lead to more success.
A pathway on Deerfield Road, installed in 2014, was a top-tier priority for the plan. Crawford Road is a second-level priority. The township would like to see the path on Deerfield extend the full length of Crawford.
Norm Woerle, a Township Commissioner, has been working on this project with Mielke. He started as a concerned citizen, but is now helping bring multiple parties together.
"It would be a wonderful thing to take that loss and make something positive out of it," he said. "That would be a plus for everyone. We are working together to try to get different entities on board to get the project to become a reality."
Mielke said the project may not be possible unless the township has help. After the hit and run, Union Township heard a lot of feedback from citizens about Crawford Road.
"It's not unfair, I just want people to be educated about what really is the whole issue here as far as solving safety," he said. "I'm not trying to pass blame as far as whose responsibility it is to fix it. No matter who does, let's all come to the table to come up with something fair."
