Los Gatos Weekly-Times Council approves three-month trial for three-way stop at Main, College Traffic engineer will report on possible one-way streets Hearing set for March 15 By Jeff Kearns Town officials are getting creative with an effort to squeeze a few extra parking spaces into the east side of downtown. The plan, which is still in the early stages, calls for making Pageant Way and part of Villa Avenue into one-way streets, allowing the creation of about 15 more parallel parking spaces on those streets. Right now, parking is allowed on only one side, but making them one way would make it possible to park on both sides of the street. Because that plan would bring more traffic through the intersection of E. Main Street and College Avenue, officials also asked for a three-way stop sign at that corner. The Town Council on Feb. 1 approved a three-month trial for the stop signs. According to Public Works Director Scott Baker, the signs should go up by the end of the month or the beginning of March. Councilmembers didn't take any action on the one-way proposal, however, but instead asked for some advice from traffic engineer Mark Wessel, who was directed to take a look at what kind of fallout the changed traffic flow might have in the area. Councilmembers also wanted to schedule a full public hearing and give nearby residents and business owners a chance to comment on the proposal. That hearing is scheduled for March 15. The preliminary plan called for Pageant Way to be redirected up from E. Main Street and around the corner to the intersection of Villa Avenue and Cleland Avenue, but the town will also consider reversing that direction. Baker said that the town is also considering making Pageant a one-way street, but leaving the short stretch between the library parking lot and E. Main Street open to two-way traffic to avoid routing library patrons around the block. Of the handful of residents addressing the issue at the meeting, most favored the installation of stop signs on E. Main Street, but had mixed opinions on the one-way plans. "I can't imagine why anyone would not want more parking," said builder Dave Flick, whose new Soda Works building stands at the corner of Main and College. "I've had thousands of people ask me why we didn't put up a stop sign when we built this project. It doesn't seem like it's going to do anything but slow people down a bit coming around the curve. It doesn't appear it's going to cause a backup." Baker, however, said the stop signs could potentially cause a backup on E. Main during peak hours, and that it would be one of the aspects of the proposal Wessel would examine. Other residents from the College Avenue neighborhood shared their angst about making a left turn at the intersection, and said that the stop signs were long overdue. "I've had near misses at College and Main," said College Avenue resident Irwin Joseph. "But regardless of what the council decides do to with respect to parking, let's please install that three-way stop sign so we can make it a safer intersection." Another neighbor, Joel Cass, said he wanted the stop sign, but said that he and 10 of his neighbors were "adamantly against one way on Pageant and Villa." Another resident suggested that one-way traffic should go the opposite direction. This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, February 10, 1999. ©1999 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.

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