Nothing confirmed at second neighborhood traffic calming meeting

The St. Johns County Neighborhood Traffic Calming Program had its second public meeting at Fruit Cove Middle School last night, March 6 at 7 p.m. Over 50 Julington Creek residents attended the meeting, which intended to propose and discuss possible solutions to the speeding problem throughout the Julington Creek neighborhood.

-The first proposed solution involved intersection improvements around the neighborhood, consisting of pavement markings and striped stop bars, speed feedback signs and 6” yellow and white edge lines.

-The second solution proposed installing an approximated 11 speed humps on numerous roads in the Julington Creek area. The humps would be 22 feet long, and could reduce overall speeds anywhere from five to nine miles per hour. It was mentioned that these humps could possibly cause some drainage issues.

-The final proposal combined the use of speed humps with three raised intersections located across the neighborhood. Again, there was a cause for concern over possible drainage issues.

-Local residents voiced their desire for an increased police presence in the area. A number of attendees expressed an interest in working with the Sheriff’s Office before approving the suggested road improvements. 

-The final issue at hand consisted of possible ballot structures when it comes time to vote on the issue. One structure consisted of the entire neighborhood voting as a whole. One carved the area into three separate voting areas. The final proposal came from the audience asking for two ballot areas, one for residents living on the neighborhood’s main drag, and one for residents who live on off-lying, smaller streets.

Nothing was finalized, and Angelo Rao, the meeting’s facilitator and advisor claimed he would make no recommendations for the next seven to 10 days, allowing time for residents to continue to supply comments and suggestions via phone or email.