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Council sets final Paige Road speed limits
By BLAINE CRIMMINS, Staff writer
The seemingly endless debate regarding speed limits for Paige Road may have finally reached its conclusion.
With the full council on the dais Monday night, The Colony City Council passed an ordinance establishing a 40 mph speed limit for the entirety of Paige Road, with a 20 mph speed limit for the school zone alongside Morningside Elementary School.
The council had previously heard the results of a speed study from Jacobs Engineering which had recommended a 40 mph limit with a 25 mph school zone limit. Monday night’s debate centered around more specific issues, such as enforcement of lower, advisory speed limits along several curvatures in the road, as well as unforeseen alterations to LISD attendance zones which might require students to cross Paige Road to attend either Griffin Middle School or Morningside Elementary.
“It’s a different kind of ticket. It’s lawfully citable but difficult to get a conviction because reasonable people can differ as to the reasonable and prudent speed” under advisory conditions, Hager said.
In support of lowering the speed limit to 35 mph, Mayor Joe McCourry pointed out that though students of Morningside Elementary School all live east of Paige Road under current attendance zones, there are other students to keep in mind.
“The problem is that we have Griffin Middle School, which is still west of Paige, and there’s an awful lot of those kids that are sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-graders that are walking across Paige,” McCourry said. “We don’t have crossing guards… and people are afraid for their kids now that there’s six lanes.”
Council member Jeff Connelly said he believed speed limits should be set by engineering studies, as opposed to emotional circumstances. In addition, “if we’re going to set speed limits as a council outside of engineering standards, there’s no reason to waste taxpayer money to do the speed study,” he said.
The new speed limits were passed by a 4-3 vote, with McCourry and council members Richard Boyer and Kirk Mikulec voting against the motion.
In other business, the council allocated $20,984 in Hotel Occupancy Tax funds to pay for advertising expenses promoting the city and its amenities in statewide publications and Web sites.
This allocation was discussed in the context of the city’s proposed Convention and Visitors Bureau. Though the Chamber of Commerce has spearheaded the concept during recent presentations to council, the city has asked staff not only to oversee advertising dollars but to provide a job description and budget for a position charged with managing a start-up CVB.
Also on Monday night, the city unveiled a new sign being posted around town honoring hometown hero and NBA basketball player Deron Williams, who won a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 with Team USA.
“There was an accomplishment made last year that gave folks in The Colony a new reason to feel hometown pride, something that hasn’t been accomplished by one of our own before, and something that was broadcast and viewed by millions of people all around the world,” said Pam Nelson, community services director for the city. “Tonight we want to take a moment to recognize the accomplishment of a man named Deron Williams … who began an outstanding basketball career at The Colony High School.”
In attendance were Williams’ mother, Denise Smith, his grandmother, and his agent and former coach Tommy Thomas.
“You did an outstanding job raising Deron,” Nelson told Smith. “He’s been a great role model for this community. Every now and then when he comes to town he shoots at the high school with the kids, and we appreciate the fact we’ve been able to honor him in this way and create this sense of pride because of what he’s accomplished as a member of this community.”
Smith said Williams is currently in Madrid on a promotional tour for the NBA.
One sign has been placed northbound on Blair Oaks near Memorial Drive. The other would be northbound on Main Street, close to State Highway 121 where it will be visible to people coming in to the city. A third sign will be installed at the recreation center, which was one of Williams’ hangouts when he lived in The Colony.
The council also honored Griffin Middle School seventh-grader Eric Yang, who won the National Geographic Bee in Washington, D.C. earlier this month. Mayor McCourry read a proclamation declaring June 1, 2009, as “Eric Yang Day in the City of The Colony.”
“I’m glad to represent my school and The Colony,” Yang said. “I’m glad you can support me. Thank you very much.”
“The Colony is really getting its name out there. We’re so proud of the young men and women who are coming from The Colony,” McCourry added.
McCourry also presented plaques of recognition to former mayor John Dillard and former Place 2 council member John S. Marshall.
Also, council member Connelly was appointed the city’s new deputy mayor pro tem, while council member Mikulec was named the city’s new mayor pro tem.
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