Let's Strangle This Eminent Domain Baby in the Crib

Hat tip to the Walnut Hills blog and This Old Crack House

Wilmington Ave/Wayne Ave Intersection Meeting
Thursday February 23rd
6:00 PM
10 Wilmington Place

There is $1.9 million in funds set aside for a project to align Wayne Ave. with Stewart Street. The goal is to make Stewart a two-way street and to widen the road to reduce traffic congestion at this intersection. To acquire the funds needed from the State of Ohio, a proposal was submitted that was devised in the early 1960s when NCR and DESCI were two major employers, and at a time that the population of the city was considerably higher.

The 1960s proposal is now considered obsolete but the funds have been allocated and changes are supposed to begin in 2009. The Walnut Hills Association and the Southeast Dayton Priority Board have expressed concerns about the proposal and the way the funding has been acquired. It is very important that residents, as many as possible, attend this meeting to provide their input because there are many who feel that this project is a waste of public money that could be better spent in another area of the city. It could also invoke eminent domain issues. Please plan to attend. If you drive through this junction at rush hour then your input is crucial. If you live on Stewart Street, your input is required. If you live on Wayne Ave. or if you live, workor have family residing at 10 Wilmington Place, your input is extremely important. The meeting should be informative and very interesting to say the least.

Walnut Hills is the Dayton neighborhood where I live, and the area that this will affect is just right around the corner from me. This project is a waste of money and effort. The “problem” they are trying to “fix” isn’t anything more than a minor irritation. It’s not like it’s a major thoroughfare connecting areas of vast industrial and commercial activity. I drive through this area on a daily basis. So what if I occasionally have to wait an extra 30 seconds because a red light, or a couple of other drivers? I think I’d rather have my tax dollars used in other ways, while knowing that property rights still mean something.

In any event, a prior obligation prevents me from attending this meeting to tell the city planners to go find more urgent matters to attend to (like watching TV or bathing their dogs). But any readers in the Dayton area should get to this meeting and find out what’s up.

See also Gary’s post on the matter.