Never mind that the City of Greensboro PIRTs (Public Information Releases) were unable to provide any evidence of economic benefit from the streetscaping of East Market Street in 2008-- the same year I believe voters were tricked into passing the Lee St/ High Point Road Bonds, Nancy Hoffmann and the rest of the Greensboro City Council insisted streetscaping would cure the corridor's woes. And never mind that Greensboro is rated the second hungriest city in America, we can always find money to make things pretty.
Neither Nancy Hoffman nor the remainder of the Greensboro City Council has to this day informed us how streetscaping and changing the names of streets will solve the issues of crime, poverty, congestion and the poor business environment that exists along the corridor. Nor have they told us how forcing businesses and consumers in Greensboro and beyond to spend money that many cannot afford to spend will help the local economy. For example: are you aware that changing the name of a street now has world-wide implications? People ship things around the world, maps will need to be changed, thousands of websites will be outdated (Google shows About 2,620,000 references to Lee St Greensboro, NC) and even the GPS units in your telephones and cars will no longer be accurate.
Will you have to pay to update the software on your GPS because city council changed street names? Will your friends and family who come from out of town to visit or go to events at the Greensboro Coliseum?
Welcome to the 21st century, the Information Age where changing street names is no longer something that can be taken casually. The Greensboro City Council has just undertaken a decision that worldwide could cost $Millions if not $Billions of Dollars to people who will never even set foot in Greensboro. All without providing any evidence that streetscaping achieves its stated goals.
I decided to dig deeper.
Back on December 19, 2013 I sent the following PIRT (Public Information Request) to the City of Greensboro:
"From this weeks Rhino times:
As some of you may be aware, since Greensboro developer Roy Carroll bought the Rhino Times, all of their previous online content has been removed from their website.
"Hoffmann later said her vote is firm, and that the renaming and improvement of High Point Road has been thoroughly studied for years."
http://www.rhinotimes.com/new-council%2c-new-views.html#.UrNp8uJ0lH1
Please send me any and all of the studies to which Councilwoman Hoffmann refers to.
Thanks -Billy Jones"
I waited for weeks but no reply came. While I was waiting I pondered, will Nancy threaten to sue me as she and Zack Matheny threatened to sue George Hartzman? Oh well, all I own is a '91 Toyota with a blown automatic transmission and a bad paint job. Last I checked the NADA Bluebook on a similar car in running condition was about $300. Sue me!
On January 29, 2014, after having waiting over a month without getting an answer I again sent my request being sure to include a few more e-mail addresses as recipients.
Roch Smith Jr replied:
"Dear Billy,
I'm sorry to read that you are having such a hard time getting a response to your public records request (below). Although it has been my observation that Councilor Hoffman has no reaction to matters of transparency and access to public records, I am forwarding this request to her in hopes that making her aware of this one might inspire her to take some action.
Although I don't live in her district, my parents do. They've hosted a meet-and-greet for her campaign and posted her yard signs in their yard, so I'm copying my dad on this email too, just so he can see the nature of Councilor Hoffman's response to a matter of interest to his son.
I hope this helps you get the studies you are looking for.
Yours,
Roch Smith, Jr."
I later heard from Donnie Turlington from the City of Greensboro:
"Hi Billy – please excuse the oversight with regard to your request for records below. It was not accounted for when you submitted it to us and I apologize. Sarah is working with the departments today to get the records for you ASAP.
-Donnie"
It's always good to hear from Donnie and I understand his job is hectic as his bosses would rather not tell us anything. Later I heard from Sarah Healy who has only been working with us for a couple of weeks. She seems nice enough and genuine in her efforts. Though I guess like I had to do with Donnie I'll have to train her to stop addressing me as Mr Jones and just call me Billy. You see, I'm not one for hiding things behind formalities.
"Dear Mr. Jones:
Thank you for your PIRT # 3223 request regarding information on studies done regarding High Point Road.
You listed a quote from the Rhino Times stating, “Hoffman later said her voice vote is firm, and that the renaming and improvement of High Point Road has been thoroughly studied for years.”
A request was placed for information on the studies to which Councilwoman Hoffman refers to in the article. Per your request, I have attached a copy of The High Point Road/West Lee Street Corridor Plan. Additional information regarding the implementation of the plan can be found here: http://www.greensboro-nc.gov/index.aspx?page=1727
Additional information regarding the road renaming process can be found here: http://www.greensboro-nc.gov/index.aspx?page=4079
I apologize for the lateness of this response and I hope this information is helpful to you.
Please let me know if you need any additional information.
Sincerely,
Sarah Healy
Attachment: High Point Road West Lee Corridor Plan- Phase 1 "
I replied:
"Sarah,
There are plans here. And links to web pages that mention studies. But there are no studies included in anything you've sent me. I specifically asked for the multiple studies Councilwoman Nancy Hoffman was referring to in the article I quoted and linked to in the Rhino Times. If the City Staff or Mrs Hoffman cannot produce said studies then it will be assumed by the vast majority of my readers including those who previously voted for Mrs Hoffman that Nancy Hoffman is a pathological liar who will say anything to produce the results she wants. Surely if there were multiple studies then some of them could be produced.
Thanks -Billy"
It was an assumption on my part that there are multiple studies but the Rhino did say, “Hoffman later said her voice vote is firm, and that the renaming and improvement of High Point Road has been thoroughly studied for years.”
I mean, if it has been studied then the City of Greensboro must have a study to back her up, right? And if it has been studied for years I would think it safe to assume there have been multiple studies. But I could be wrong on both counts, there could be no studies at all. In which case Nancy Hoffmann is a pathological liar willing to say anything to get what she wants. But, the jury is still out.
Sarah quickly got back to me:
"Billy,
Let me see what other information I can get for you. I have placed a call with the Planning and Community Development office and will follow up with you tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Sarah"
Ah, she's calling me Billy now. I'm sure that part about Nancy being seen as a pathological liar is not something Sarah wants to be held responsible for. She'll try hard to find those studies. There appears to be a general consensus among most of city staff and the City Council that if they ignore us long enough we simply give up and go away but Sarah and Donnie know better. For Nancy Hoffman to pull that off she's going to have to out live me and believe it or not Nancy is a whole lot older than I am. Besides, I'm training my much younger replacements.
While I was waiting on Sarah I began to wonder about the many other unresolved issues surrounding Nancy Hoffmann. Does anyone know why Nancy was kicked off the Board at the Friendly West Townhouse Association? Just askin', that's all. And did she and Dawn Cheney really swindle the grieving widow of African-American lawyer Lee Andrews?
Sarah e-mails me the next morning. I told you she would try hard:
"Billy,
I am waiting on some additional information from the Department of Transportation and the Planning and Community Development Office – as soon as I get it, I will send it to you.
Thanks,
Sarah"
I reply back:
"Thanks!"
In the meantime I publish Nancy Hoffman's Taxpayer Subsidzed Pay-To-Park Parking Lot.
Things aren't looking very good for Councilwoman Hoffmann. People are beginning to grow concerned about her honesty and her reasons for holding elected office. Is she really just in politics to make her real estate ventures more profitable? Will Sarah be able to save the
That reminds me, I should probably get my crack team to start investigating what sorts of investments Ms Hoffmann and her partners might have along Lee Street and High Point Road. Whatever happened to elected officials avoiding even the appearance of corruption, much less corruption itself. Why did Nancy Hoffmann not vote for this?
I tried to be nice while speaking before City Council and not name names but one of those council members who had previously failed to disclose her property was none other than Nancy Hoffmann-- the property next door to her pay-to-park lot for which the city is providing free signage-- a building that also received incentives from the City of Greensboro.
What's that? Who else failed to disclose their property? Why Zack Matheny, who did you think?
I left for a while and when I returned I had 2 e-mails from Sarah. The first one read:
"Billy:
I have two studies for you, however, one is too large to send via email. I have to send it through our FTP system. Have you done that before? If not, call me and I will walk you through it. My direct line is 336.373.3282.
The study that I am sending through the FTP system is the High Point Road/West Lee Street Study dated August 5, 2009. It states in the executive summary, “This study is intended to evaluate the possible impacts of implementing this plan as related to the existing travel conditions. Proposed changes in land use and infrastructure are considered, and recommendations specific to capacity constraints, pedestrian facilities and transit usage as part of the proposed corridor plan are made.”
Here is how you can obtain the study:
How to get files from the Public FTP server:
1. Ask the outside users to follow these steps:
2. Right-click on My Computer and select Explore
3. In the Address box enter: ftp://ftp.greensboro-nc.gov
4. Drill down to the Public affairs folder
5. Select the file and drag it to the local desktop
Again, please feel free to call me with any questions on this.
The second study is the project planning study (2010) in which GDOT conducted a study in 2010 to identify how to most effectively use the limited funds available for public investment and define a vision of the corridor that can be used to guide future public and private investment along the corridor. The study GDOT is referring to is called the High Point Road/West Lee Street streetscape implantation plan, which studies among other things, utility options, cost matrices, and utility cost assumptions. I realize that it is referred to as a “plan” however the study findings are here: http://www.greensboro-nc.gov/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=4734
and I confirmed this with GDOT today.
Any other additional studies that have been conducted, I will be sure to send along to you per your request.
Please let me know if you need anything else.
Sincerely,
Sarah"
I'll let you, Dear Readers, examine the High Point Road/West Lee Street streetscape implantation plan, aka, the study and see what you think. Is it a study or not? My guess is folks in the GDOT wouldn't give a damn if Nancy Hoffmann were to get run over by a GTA bus. After all, that's not their department and after all the flack they're taking over placing signs directing traffic to her parking lot... Well, you know. I e-mailed Sarah back:
"Sarah, I went to the Public Affairs folder ftp://ftp.greensboro-nc.gov/Public_Affairs/ but there is nothing in there. -Billy"
I went through the same thing with the Yes-Weekly/Marikay Abuzuaiter Confidential Informant story last year. The city staff puts these files online for a limited amount of time (How long nobody knows.) then pulls them back down again as if everyone is connected to the Internet 24/7/365. It's not Sarah's fault, it's how her bosses do business.
And the second one:
"Billy – just confirming that you received my reply with the studies included. I tried to attach the second study and the email was sent back twice. I can print it for you if you would like.My reply:
Let me know.
Sincerely,
Sarah"
"Please do."
I'm not big on telephone conversations because I can't copy and paste telephone conversations but I guess a telephone call will be required. Someday perhaps I'll be able to record telephone calls.
I've got to give Sarah credit, like Donnie she really is going the extra mile. But why? In the meeting I attended last year I expressed frustration that all of this information isn't already available in a searchable online data base. It was then I learned that it is already online in a searchable data base that city employees use every day. The city IT department said it would be no problem to make it available to the public but they can't do so without the approval of the Greensboro City Council of which Nancy Hoffmann is one.
Why is city staff doing all this stepping and fetching when I could have already learned what I wanted to know on December 19th, 2013? 'Tis the way of the world I guess, slow to turn and even slower to turn in the right direction.
I got the following e-mail from Sarah the next morning:
"Billy, it is now in the Public Affairs folder. They delete the files every night at midnight, but it should have been in the folder when you checked. My apologies. Let me know if you have any problems getting it today.
There is also a copy of the second study for you (High Point Road/West Lee Street streetscape implantation plan) and it will be at the front desk.
Let me know if you need anything else.
Sincerely,
Sarah"
But alas it wasn't in the Public Affairs Folder so I ended up calling her. She quickly got IT to put it in the Public Affairs Folder for a 3rd time and called me back in just minutes but when I downloaded the file it could not be read by my computer. Sarah burned it to disc and I made a trip downtown. While on my way I pondered the audacity of any elected official who would appoint her own business partner to the board of directors of a city funded non profit that she oversees? This stuff is public record, folks.
Did anyone hear how Ms Hoffmann made out from that lawsuit? She really should hire a lawyer who doesn't go about town telling everyone her business, you know.
Sarah had it ready when I got there so as soon as I got home I plugged the High Point Road/West Lee Street CORRIDOR FORECAST PROJECT Prepared for the City of Greensboro by Martin Alexiou Bryson of 4000 Westchase Blvd. Suite 530, in Raleigh, North Carolina into my computer and began to read what I found there:
"EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Project Background
The City of Greensboro officially adopted the High Point Road/West Lee Street Corridor Plan - Phase 1 on December 16, 2008. This Corridor Plan outlines strategies and recommendations to encourage significant new public and private investment while improving the roadway and adjacent properties from South Eugene Street to I-40. Key recommendations in the Corridor Plan are
focused around reinvestment and land use, transportation, infrastructure and appearance, public safety, and implementation. The High Point Road/West Lee Street Corridor is identified in the City’s Comprehensive Plan as one of a number of corridors that would benefit from visual improvements and increased economic opportunities.
This study is intended to evaluate the possible impacts of implementing this plan as related to the existing travel conditions. Proposed changes in land use and infrastructure are considered, and recommendations specific to capacity constraints, pedestrian facilities, and transit usage as part of the proposed corridor plan are made."
Okay, so we've established that part of the stated goal of the study is in-fact economic development in the form of " significant new public and private investment." I can live with that. But does the study offer any evidence that streetscaping will actually achieve said goal? Keep in mind that neither the City of Greensboro nor the American Planning Association has any evidence that streetscaping has worked before. That and the above quote was the last mention of public and private investment or anything related to economic development contained in the study. As a matter of fact, a quick check of the Martin Alexiou Bryson shows us their business is solely transportation planning and traffic engineering so why would they make claims as to economic development? More from the study:
"TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.0 INTRODUCTION........................................................1
2.0 EXISTING CONDITIONS ..........................................5
2.1 Existing Roadway Conditions................................5
2.2 Existing Turning Movement Data .............................18
2.3 Level of Service Criteria ....................................20
2.4 Level of Service Analysis.......................................20
2.5 Existing Crash Analysis.......................................21
3.0 FUTURE CONDITIONS WITHOUT CORRIDOR PLAN.......24
3.1 Background Growth and Development ......................25
3.2 Level of Service Analysis...............................25
4.0 CORRIDOR PLAN .............................................30
4.1 Trip Generation..................................................30
4.2 Traffic Distribution and Assignment...................33
5.0 FUTURE CONDITIONS WITH CORRIDOR PLAN..........37
5.1 Option #1.........................................37
5.2 Option #2....................................43
5.3 Option #3...................................46
5.4 Option #4........................................50
6.0 PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ............................56
6.1 existing conditions...................................56
6.1.1 Route 11 – High Point Road (Weekday and Saturday Service) .........56
6.1.2 Route 2 – Four Seasons Town Centre (Weekday and Saturday Service)......60
6.1.3 Route 25 – Four Seasons Town Centre/High Point Road (Sunday Service).61
6.1.4 Route 72 – City HEAT (Weekday and Saturday Service) ..................62
6.1.5 Bus Stop Conditions .............................63
6.1.6 Adequacy of Current Transit Service and Facilities ........63
6.2 Projected Future Conditions ..................64
6.2.1 Transit Services .....................................64
6.2.2 Transit Facilities..................................65
7.0 PEDESTRIAN FACILITIES.......................66
7.1 Existing Conditions ...................................66
7.2 Projected Future Conditions ......................68
8.0 BICYCLE FACILITIES................................71
8.1 Existing Conditions ..............................71
8.2 Projected Future ...............................71
9.0 FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS....................73
APPENDICES
Appendix A: Existing Turning Movement Counts
Appendix B: Signal Plans and Timings
Appendix C: Intersection Capacity Analysis
Appendix D: Corridor Plan Trip Generation Information"
As you can see, the study was in-fact just a traffic study. But you are going to love this:
"FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS
Traffic analyses indicate that the corridor is operating at acceptable levels of service, during both the A.M. and P.M. peak hours. Heavy queuing and long delays exist on individual approaches at certain locations; however, the corridor generally operates without substantial backups during normal weekday peaks. Assuming the corridor grows as is anticipated in the regional model, most intersections are projected to continue operating acceptably in 2025. By 2035, operations degrade considerably, resulting in LOS E or LOS F conditions at several intersections along High Point Road and West Lee Street.
The Corridor Plan is expected to result in approximately 800 net new trips to the study area roadway network during the A.M. peak hour and 3,300 net new trips during the P.M. peak hour. Once this traffic is distributed to the study area, most intersections will continue to operate acceptably in 2025; however significant congestion is projected by 2035 during the P.M. peak. Some widening will be necessary to accommodate the background growth alone and additional widening is necessary to offset increased traffic associated with the Corridor Plan. Reducing the intensity of the planned redevelopment will reduce the ultimate widening needed by 2035."
That's right, according to their very own study, the plan currently being pursued by the Greensboro City Council will increase traffic on Lee Street and High Point Road and require that all the streetscaping be torn out so that the streets can be widened by 2035. Then we get to do it all over again.
And lest we forget the Cascade Saloon? After Councilwoman Hoffmann voted to give $200,000 of City funding to the project she then became one of its owners. That's the same property where I recently told you how Councilwoman Nancy Hoffmann arranged to have the Greensboro Department of Transportation put up signs at taxpayers' expense.
But again, I'm getting off topic again. I've yet to prove Nancy Hoffmann a pathological liar but Councilwoman Hoffmann and the rest of the Greensboro City Council have got a lot of explaining to do as to their claims that Greensboro and the Lee St/High Point Road Corridor will reap long term benefits from streetscaping and changing street names. As a matter of fact: it's looking as if it just might be the opposite as gridlock and the taxes required to pay for said gridlock brings business in the corridor to a grinding halt.
