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Two potential routes have been identified for the proposed Sylva-Dillsboro
Southern Loop. The northern alternate would run from roughly Mockingbird
Lane on U.S. 23-441 south of Dillsboro, cross N.C. 107 just south
of Cope Creek Road and intersect U.S. 23-74 east of Sylva near
Blanton Branch. Estimated cost for construction and right-of-way
acquisition on the 6.3-mile segment is $193,800,000. The southern
alternate would leave U.S. 23-441 near Cagle Branch Road, cross
N.C. 107 near South River Road and intersect with U.S. 23-74 near
Blanton Branch. Estimated construction and right-of-way cost for
the 8.7-mile road is $227,400,000. Both alternates are proposed
as four-lane routes. The Jackson County Smart Road Alliance questions
the need for the proposed road. Their opinion article can be found
this week on page 5A.
Who will decide how county grows? Residents or Raleigh?
By Roger Turner
and Lydia Aydlett
Jackson County
Smart Roads Alliance
Jackson County conducted a series of Smart Growth public meetings
in 2000 to identify the needs and concerns of its citizens.
It was clear at that time that citizens favored growth that would
preserve mountain communities, heritage, natural resources and
rural landscape. This has not changed. We now have a defining
issue: the proposed Sylva Bypass-Loop Road. (See map on page 1A.)
"Who will decide the growth of Jackson County?" was the question
asked by a group of concerned citizens who met last Thursday night
at Webster Methodist Church. The group, the Jackson County Smart
Roads Alliance, gathered in response to the recently-released
feasibility study by the N.C. Department of Transportation on
the Sylva Bypass Road, designed to address traffic congestion
on N.C. Highway 107.
For those who have not seen the study, two potential routes are
defined - the northern route intersecting N.C. 107 at Cope Creek
and the southern route at a point south of the intersection of
Highways 107/116 near Jack the Dipper.
Each alternative is divided into two segments. The west segment
runs from U.S. 23-441 to N.C. 107, and the east segment from N.C.
107 to U.S. 23-74. The northern alternate would roughly follow
Cope Creek, with the southern alternate running near and just
west of Locust Creek. Either of the two routes will lead to a
four-lane highway with 300- to 1,400-foot right-of-ways within
a 1,200-foot corridor.
The impact on several communities will be immense: The northern
route will displace 124 homes and 17 businesses, while the southern
route will take 94 homes and five businesses. A significant portion
of Jackson County's farms, woodlands and wetlands will be impacted,
as well as our quality of life.
The Smart Roads Alliance has been meeting since September 2002
to explore alternatives and options to building an entirely new
road system around Sylva. These meetings defined a need for a
feasibility study for the management of traffic on N.C. 107, for
a possible redesigning of existing strip development, transportation
planning and improvements that fit with community character and
preservation of open space.
Such management can bring significant benefits: postponing or
preventing costly new highways, improving traffic safety by reducing
congestion and delays, promoting desirable land use patterns,
and making pedestrian and bicycle travel safer. The current clutter
and congestion along N.C. 107 is the result of poor planning policies
and lack of vision.
In November 2002, Jackson County and the towns of Sylva and Webster
formally requested a study for traffic management on N.C.107 from
Department of Transportation. This is not addressed or mentioned
in DOT's feasibility study.
The traffic analysis offered is predicated on either a "no-build"
scenario or a "build" scenario.
There is no attempt at defining a "no-build" with an improved
N.C. 107 scenario. N.C. DOT has often stated its willingness to
work with local citizens and officials by welcoming public input.
If this is true, then why does it continue to ignore a reasonable
request for a study to improve traffic flows on N.C. 107?
Any feasibility study will be deeply flawed until it addresses
indirect and cumulative impacts of this proposed road or an evaluation
of project-induced growth effects such as changes in the pattern
of land use, population density or growth rate, and related effects
on air, water and other natural systems. An assessment of these
effects is required by the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969, the N.C. Environmental Policy Act, and under the Council
on Environmental Quality regulations implementing NEPA.
To address the threat of disruption that a bypass will bring
to Jackson County, the Smart Roads Alliance is planning a forum
on managing troublesome traffic spots on N.C. 107 along with its
negative impact on the surrounding business and residential communities.
The Alliance wants to create an opportunity for people of Jackson
County to decide how growth will occur and how to manage the problems
growth brings. We seek a vision that will solve traffic problems
without jeopardizing our quality of life.
The question remains: Who will decide the future growth of Jackson
County? Will it be done by the people who live here or by a bureaucracy
in Raleigh that exists to build roads? We are not against growth
and development, nor a reasonable expansion of existing roads.
We are for the preservation of our communities. The answers to
this issue are not easy. If you would like to be part of the answer,
join the Smart Roads Alliance at its next meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday,
July 15, in Room 215 of the Jackson County Justice Center.
For more information, call Lydia Aydlett at 631-3824 or Harold
Messer at 586-9416.
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