Village of Manlius residents spoke against a plan to install sidewalks on Eureka and Park drives as part of a community development grant application during a public hearing.
A few residents of the neighborhood spoke at the hearing held Tuesday, March 13, at the Village Centre.
“You met my wife when she closed the door in your face, and I apologize for that,” said Park Drive resident Tom Calie.
Calie called his street “part of the old village, a more established senior-oriented street with very few children. Buses don’t go down it, they pick up on Eureka.”
Calie suggested there might be other areas of the village more in need of sidewalks.
“The last couple of days I spoke with seven out of nine homes affected and all remarked not only that it was not only unnecessary but that a sidewalk would disrupt the natural setting [as the street ends] at Perry Springs,” Calie said. “People love to walk there … walk their dogs there. I’ve spoken to some of them and the general reaction was surprise. It really isn’t needed.”
Park Drive resident Doug Richer also was against sidewalks on Park Drive.
“I don’t see why it seems the village is spending so much money on parks, parks, parks,” Richer said. “Plus it’s a very narrow street. I don’t think it’s 20 feet wide.”
Another Park Drive resident, Thalia Collis, agreed that the street is too narrow to accommodate a sidewalk.
“People have fencing and landscaping,” Collis said. “This would disrupt that. In addition, I’ve had sewer issues and was told that the sewer lines and water lines are not very deep. [Putting sidewalks in] could then have a ripple effect.”
Village of Manlius Mayor Mark-Paul Serafin said the village was open to other options, including having the sidewalk on Eureka end at Park Drive, then striping something similar to a bike lane on the pavement of Park Drive.
“We have taken this part out of the community grant application and have a budget for sidewalks in the village,” Serafin said. “We might lean towards just striping Park and even Eureka just so people walking down to Perry Springs are safe.”
