APPLETON (NBC 26) — A plan to narrow a dead-end street in Appleton as part of routine road repairs is drawing pushback from residents who say the changes would come at their expense and fail to solve the problems the city says they are designed to fix.
Driscoll Street is slated to shrink from 32 feet wide to 26 feet, gain new sidewalks, and shift all street parking to one side. But residents say a major sticking point is that they would be required to pay for the new sidewalks installed in their yards.
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Dawn Gilbert-Biechler, an Appleton neighbor, is pushing back.
"It's around two thousand dollars for the sidewalk itself; each person would have to pay on their own."
The city says its "Smart Streets" initiative increases access for neighbors and reduces speeding. But residents are skeptical that narrowing the road will have the intended effect.
"They're already speeding, they don't care about the laws already. So the narrowing the road isn't going to slow that group down," said Jim Satorius, a Driscoll resident.
Neighbors also point out that Driscoll Street is a dead-end road and that its current width already makes it difficult for large vehicles to turn out. They argue that a single citywide guideline should not apply to every street.
"It can definitely be deviated, there can be amendments made. So our hope is that they look at our story and our compassion and what we've told them and look at this is not needed on a dead-end road," Gilbert-Biechler said.
30 neighbors who live on Driscoll have signed a petition against the changes to their road.
The Municipal Services Committee delayed its decision on Driscoll Street. The Common Council is set to vote on May 6 on narrowing other streets across Appleton. The next meeting on Driscoll Street's future is scheduled for June 8, giving neighbors another opportunity to weigh in.
