BRUNSWICK
Following a public hearing Tuesday night, the Brunswick Town Council voted to change the traffic pattern and parking at Harriet Beecher Stowe Elementary School.
The one-way ordinance during dismissal time along the access loop road will now change, making the road one-way all the time.
Also, parents will no longer be allowed to park on the north side of the street during dismissal, but will have to park in the parking lot or make other arrangements.
In a memo to Town Manager John Eldridge, Brunswick Police Cmdr. Mark Waltz outlined observations he and Principal Jean Skorpa made over the last few years.
The memo said that the one-way traffic works well at dismissal and due to the large volume of vehicles in the morning, it would be reasonable to believe it would work well then too.
As for parking, Waltz expressed concerns, both in the memo and in person before the council on Feb. 1, that the access road was not designed for parking, making the road narrower than intended.
Children stepping between vehicles makes for a potential hazard to children trying to get to the school.
There was no comment from the public Tuesday evening, but Waltz was present once again to explain the changes to the council and public before a vote was made.
Some concerns were posed by Councilor Kathy Wilson regarding a resident’s observations that the situation around the school has become more of a zoo than before, since officers began telling parents they cannot park along the loop last week.
Wilson said she was told that parents were instead circling the parking lot, driving around the block or parking on adjacent streets, possibly making for a different kind of dangerous situation for the students.
Waltz said that until parents change their behavior regarding the parking, pickup and drop off at HBS, there is a possibility of them swapping one bad habit for another.
The ordinance passed unanimously.
dmcintire@timesrecord.com
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