Rosewood Traffic in the News Again

Following the accident on S. Holly on Saturday morning, Dec. 2, I contacted City Councilman Howard Duvall and County Councilman Seth Rose and told them a meeting was needed to (once again) discuss traffic calming in Rosewood. Our meeting took place on Thursday, Dec. 7, at the City of Columbia Public Works office. In attendance were councilmen Duvall and Rose, David Brewer and Robert Anderson from the City of Columbia, Ed Sawyer and Lori Campbell from the S.C. Dept. of Transportation, and Sgt. Uhall of the Columbia traffic police. Representing Rosewood were S. Holly resident Mike Ely, S. Bonham resident Matthew Upchurch, and myself. It was a productive meeting with a lively discussion of various traffic calming measures. We were pleased that so many members of government attended and expressed an understanding of our concern. However, the major complication we face is that almost all the streets in Rosewood are state-controlled roads and not city streets. This means any traffic calming initiatives must meet S.C. DOT requirements (traffic counts, average speed of motorists, etc.) and unfortunately, they do not. To complicate matters further, S. Holly is classified as a “major connector,” which prevents the installation of traffic-calming devices. But there is also good news. Work has begun to change the coding of S. Holly from a major connector to a minor connector, which will hopefully allow some form of traffic calming to be enacted. Plus, a temporary speed hump will be installed, possibly on Airport Boulevard, to allow residents to experience its effects and aid in decision making as we move forward. And it was agreed that we would reconvene in early 2018 for another meeting. It’s a complex and frustrating issue, and it will take time. We impressed upon everyone at the meeting that our only concern is to provide better safety for the people of Rosewood. We’re working hard, and we’ll keep everyone informed when there is news to share. — Mike Miller, president, Rosewood Community Council.

Michael’s Plan for the Rosewood Orchard

We are still saddened and, quite frankly, stunned about the death of Michael Juras, who worked diligently for the past four years to make the Rosewood Public Orchard a success. Michael had extraordinary vision and expertise. He wanted the orchard to be a shining example of how an urban garden could flourish thanks to all-natural, progressive techniques.

It’s been expressed recently by many people that we need to keep the garden going as a tribute to Michael’s dignity, devotion, and hard work. I have attached a 38-page document that he and his Columbia Resilience colleagues created to outline a plan for the orchard. Let’s use it as a starting point, and as a guide as we move forward. The words below are from Michael himself, taken from an email he sent to city officials just a few days before his death:

“Attached is the Rosewood Public Orchard Assessment and Design authored by my Columbia Resilience colleagues. This document was made available to Todd Martin and Graham Taylor subsequent to Jeff Caton, Ray Williams and Graham touring the orchard site at the time we began building the topsoil with City leaves. The document provides site history including demographics, climate, and soil analysis. It also articulates the strategy for producing a community food forest intended to be an example for what can be applied elsewhere in the Midlands. Be aware that work to this point entails the early stages of development. I encourage you to peruse the entire document.

Please see the following pages for special points of interest:

• Page 20 for Goals Articulation (Expanded version)
• Page 32 for the guild design that specifies vegetation to replace successional grasses.
• Page 36 for the annual maintenance plan.”

As Michael said, the orchard is still in early stages of development, and there’s work to be done. We will soon be organizing a volunteer group to preserve the Rosewood Public Orchard. Thanks to everyone who wants to volunteer and get their hands a little dirty in the garden. Stay tuned for further notices about how you can get involved.

Rosewood Orchard Design

RCC Meeting This Thursday, July 20, 2017

Hi folks. The Rosewood Community Council will meet this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in the large conference room at Owens Field Airport. It’s summer and it’s hot, so this will be a short meeting. However, it’s time again to nominate new RCC officers. The floor will be open for nominations for president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer. Voting will take place at our October meeting. Also, CPD officer Kevin Schmidt will stop by and give us a public safety report. And I’ll have information on several upcoming events, including a new development planned for Superior Street near Rosewood Hills. Stay cool, everybody, and we hope to see you Thursday.

Rosewood Corridor and Neighborhood Plan

At last night’s meeting of the Rosewood Community Council (April 20, 2017), John Fellows and Leigh DeForth from the city’s Planning and Development Services talked to us about the Rosewood Corridor and Neighborhood Plan that was adopted in 2012.  It can be viewed in its entirety at the link below.

pds_rosewood_plan_final_2012_05

At 150 pages in length, it is a rather unwieldy document. Thankfully, Ms. DeForth has provided shortcuts to sections of particular interest. So grab a cup of coffee and be patient as you navigate. If you have a question or come across something you’d like to comment on, you can reach Mr. Fellows at jsfellows@columbiasc.net and Ms. DeForth at ladeforth@columbiasc.net. Here are Ms. DeForth’s shortcuts:          

Introduction (pages 11-14) summarizes the planning process, for folks who may not have been able to take part, this may be of interest.

·         Existing conditions (pages 15-31) covers statistics about the community, inclusive of spatial analysis (maps), including things like utilities, tree  cover, crime, and transportation options.

·         Physical Development- Neighborhood (pages 33- 38) makes recommendations for the physical development of the neighborhood area (the plan splits the area into neighborhood, corridor, and industrial).  It speaks a lot about land use, zoning, jurisdictional boundaries, and options for pursuing different types of zoning moving forward. 

·         Physical Development – Corridor (pages 40-47) makes recommendations for the physical development of the corridor area along Rosewood itself.  It discusses preferred building types, uses, and streetscapes

·         Physical Development – Industrial (pages  49-54) makes recommendations for the industrial area (the area in proximity to Owens Field), and references the redevelopment recommended in the Columbia Owens Master Plan (an older plan for the area), as well as physical and economic development-related recommendations for the area.

·         Physical Development – Transportation (pages 56- 64) discusses streets, speeds, and bicycle and pedestrian planning options.  We’ll be going over the updated recommendations for bicycle and pedestrian treatments tomorrow when discussing the Walk Bike Columbia Plan (www.walkbikecolumbia.org). 

·         Physical Development- Sustainability (pages 66-69) makes some general recommendations to improve sustainability throughout the Rosewood area

·         Physical Development- Implementation (pages 72-82) lists the implementation strategies, actions needed, and timing.

·         Community Input (pages 84-96) reviews the items discussed at public meetings, etc.

·         Maps & Charts (pages 99-132) includes the maps used throughout the process, shown at a larger scale (11×17) for clarity.  Page 108 shows the neighborhood/corridor delineation.

·         Survey (pages 133-147) provides the survey questionnaire, as well as a summary of answers received.

New Development in Rosewood

As many of you know, a new development is coming to the 400 block of S. Saluda Ave. in Rosewood. Developer Scott Linaberry is planning to build eight duplexes on property currently occupied by condemned, run-down bungalows on both sides of the street. According to Scott, his structures “won’t be all brick, but will have brick accents and encapsulated porches to appear cleaner and neater from the street.” He is also touting off-street parking and the preservation of green spaces and trees. The project was approved by the City of Columbia’s Planning Commission on Feb. 6. But the Planning Commission has informed us that they’re willing to hear any concerns neighborhood residents might have. So please feel free to comment here about this new development. Scott has said he will attend our April meeting if necessary. You can email questions, compliments, or concerns to Scott at stlinaberry@aol.com.

RCC Quarterly Meeting This Thursday, Jan. 19, at 6:30 p.m.

Rosewood Community Council will hold its quarterly meeting this Thursday, Jan. 19, in the large conference room at Owens Field Airport. Columbia Police Officer Kevin Schmidt will give us an update on public safety. County Councilman Seth Rose will stop by for a brief visit. Todd Martin from Columbia Parks & Recreation will give us an update on the Owens Field Park renovations. And Rosewood neighbor Jennifer Worth and One Columbia for Arts & History executive director, Lee Snelgrove, will tell us about a new neighborhood public arts project that’s in the works. The meeting begins at 6:30, and we hope to see you there.

RCC meeting this Thursday

County Councilman Seth Rose will attend the Rosewood Community Council’s quarterly meeting this Thursday, Oct. 20, at 6:30 p.m. at the Ben Arnold Boys & Girls Club on S. Holly Street near Memorial Stadium [map]. Councilman Rose and county government staff members will give an update on the Owens Field Park renovation project, and they’ll answers questions about recent tree cutting, the Miracle Field, storm water management, and other issues. Columbia Police Dept. officer Kevin Schmidt will also be on hand to give a report on public safety as well as new code enforcement initiatives. The meeting will last from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., and we hope to see you there.

Avoiding Mosquito Bites

Folks in Rosewood already  know how big a nuisance mosquitoes can be. But the pesky critters can be more than a nuisance. Recently a sample of mosquitoes taken from the Shandon area tested positive for West Nile virus. As a result, Richland County is urging residents to take steps to prevent mosquito bites. Although the risk of serious illness is low, precautions should be taken. “Most people infected with West Nile virus have no symptoms,” said Linda Bell, M.D. and state epidemiologist. “The rise of serious illness is low, with less than one percent of people infected developing a potentially fatal inflammation of the brain known as encephalitis.” However, DHEC has identified multiple cases of West Nile in South Carolina this year, including two in Richland County. So take precautions and avoid mosquito bites. Click on the following three links to learn how to protect yourself and your home. protect-your-home-from-mosquitoes protect-yourself-from-mosquito-bites west-nile-virus-action-sheet

Traffic Calming in Rosewood

At the Rosewood Community Council meeting on July 21st at the Arnold Boys & Girls Club, the city of Columbia’s traffic engineer, David Brewer, led a lively discussion on traffic calming in Rosewood. He presented us with a map of 22 possible sites for speed humps in our neighborhood. That map, which was created after many neighbors became alarmed by speeding drivers on our streets, is attached below. We’d like everyone to take a look at the map, and if you live near one of the proposed speed humps, send us a message on whether or not you approve. If you live on a street that doesn’t have any designated sites but you feel it needs speed humps, too, let us know about it. Mr. Brewer says it is up to us, Rosewood neighbors, to approve or reject these speed humps. Construction could begin fairly quickly on the ones that are approved. So give us some feedback. You can make your comments here on this post, at the RCC Facebook page, or by emailing RCC president Mike Miller at mike.rosewoodcouncil@gmail.com. Thanks, and we look forward to hearing from you.

Rosewood Area Speed Hump Map

RCC Quarterly Meeting

The quarterly meeting of the Rosewood Community Council will take place this Thursday, July 21, at 6:30 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club on Holly Street [map]. The city’s traffic engineer, David Brewer, will lead a discussion about traffic calming in Rosewood. Michael Juras will give an update on the community orchard at Owens Field Park. Also on the agenda will be Officer Kevin Schmidt of the CPD, who will give us a neighborhood public safety report.