Subdivision residents raise safety concerns to Jackson aldermen

A dozen residents of Jackson's Annwood Estates are asking City Hall to help make their small subdivision located off East Jackson Boulevard safer.

The group has submitted a signed petition aimed at reducing the speed limit from 30 to 20 miles per hour within Annwood Estates and installing a stop sign at the intersection of Dana Drive and Nicole Lane/Leming Lane.

The petition was included in study session documentation at the Tuesday, Sept. 5 Board of Aldermen meeting.

The impetus behind the residents' action is an accident last month that seriously injured a pedestrian at the aforementioned intersection.

"There's very little traffic up in there because there are only a couple of streets, but I understand residents' concerns about keeping something else from happening in the future," said Ward 1 Alderman Paul Sander, himself a former longterm mayor of the city.

An excerpt from an Aug. 16 letter addressed to Mayor Dwain Hahs and city aldermen, which accompanied the petition, reads as follows.

"One of the things that makes the Annwood Estates subdivision a great place to live is the fact we have so many people out walking with their children, pets and friends on a regular basis. However, these pedestrians must also share a narrow road with parked cars and moving traffic. We also understand that new subdivisions in the city of Jackson are required to have sidewalks, which we do not have here. We hope a new stop sign and lower speed limit will help prevent more potential tragedies in our neighborhood in the future and make all our residents feel more comfortable about getting out to enjoy it."

A multi-day traffic study was conducted by city engineer Anna Bergmark in the subdivision from Aug. 25 to Aug. 28 showing 829 vehicles used Annwood's roads and 51 were clocked going over the posted speed limit.

Janet Sanders, Jackson's director of Public Works, said in a Thursday, Aug. 31, letter to Hahs and the board, recommended maintaining the current speed limit and noted a total of five accidents occurred within Annwood Estates since 2018, and only one at an intersection.

"The current configuration could be improved by granting the request for a four-way stop at the Dana Drive/Nicole Lane/Leming Lane intersection at the east end of the subdivision. Due to the narrow streets, the hill and parking on both sides, visibility distance at that end is limited. A third stop sign is also possible on northbound Brittany Drive at the Leming Lane intersection. This intersection currently has two adjacent legs stopping and only the northbound lane of Brittany Drive free-flowing. However, it should be noted that installation of a stop sign at this location will be almost directly in front of the house at 3502 Leming Lane and may not be aesthetically pleasing to that resident. Based on these results, (city) staff recommends a four-way stop at the eastern intersection, a three-way stop at the western intersection, and leaving the speed limit at the current 30 mph, which is the city's standard for residential subdivisions except areas in close proximity to schools," Sanders wrote.

Aldermen take no action in study session. The matter may come up during the next aldermanic regular meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 18.