New transportation authority suggested

By Tiffany Ray
Montgomery Advertiser
January 23, 2004 - Montgomery Advertiser
Article reprinted with the express permission of the Montgomery Advertiser.


COMING UP

What: "How We Grow Together: Planning for Quality Communities," a conference of residents, business and government leaders, builders and developers from the five-county river region. Participants will learn the importance of smart growth and planning.

When: 7:30 a.m. to noon on Feb. 27, with an op tional afternoon session until 2:30 p.m.

Where: Montgomery Civic Center

How much: $35 for morning only (includes breakfast), $40 all day (includes breakfast and lunch), $10 for students (student scholarships available)

To register: Call Envision 2020 at (334) 269-0224
A regional transportation authority should be created to develop transit options for residents of the five-county river region, and older buildings -- particularly those considered to be historic -- should be reused, civic and business leaders said Wednesday.

Those were among the recommendations presented to the Envision 2020 board of directors during a meeting of two task forces that began more than a year ago to study regional issues related to planning and zoning, as well as mass transportation.

The two groups are among 13 current task forces charged by Envision to help plan for future growth and enhance the quality of life in Autauga, Elmore, Montgomery, Lowndes and Macon counties. The information they collected, based on a series of community meetings and expert opinions, will provide background for Envision 2020's regional growth conference in Montgomery next month.

Planning for growth in the region has become particularly vital with the coming of the Hyundai automotive plant, along with a slew of direct suppliers, to Montgomery and the surrounding areas.

The automaker and its suppliers -- 23 thus far -- are expected to bring an influx of roughly 25,000 new residents to the river region, said Lynn Beshear, executive director of Envision 2020.

"That's another Prattville," said of the projected number. "That's another town."

Beshear said Wednesday's reports demonstrate why the Feb. 27 conference is so important.

"We don't even know what the issues are because nothing like this has ever happened before," Beshear said.

Recommendations from the planning and zoning task force included:

  • Support legislation to give county governments more flexibility in planning and zoning of property.
  • Design libraries, schools and other public buildings that are accessible to the community and fit into their surroundings.
  • Develop a regionwide strategy for planning and preserving open space.
  • Encourage rural communities to establish planning processes that addresses basic values, resources and goals.
  • The mass transportation and roads task force, meanwhile, offered the following recommendations:
  • Develop a railroad museum as a tourist attraction, in addition to a river tour package that will highlight historic sights between Montgomery and Selma.
  • Develop alternative modes of transportation, including bike paths, sidewalks and mass transit systems.
  • Endorse extensions of U.S. 80 and Interstate 85 to connect central Alabama to Mississippi.
  • Encourage teleworking options that allow employees to work from home one or more days a week, thereby reducing traffic, among other benefits.