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  Updated Jun 16, 2000       
    
  
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_Pinehurst Traffic: ‘A Hassle’
 
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By Tim Wilkins
 _It’s 8:10 a.m., and the line of automobiles waiting to drop off children for
the start of another school day at Pinehurst Elementary School is 30 deep and
backed up onto Dundee Road. 
Parents patiently wait their turn as each car is greeted and relieved of its
precious cargo by a pair of cheerful teachers.What spoils the moment is that
for many of these children, class started 10 minutes ago.Parents and teachers
alike are expressing frustration over a new village ordinance that prohibits
stopping on a public thoroughfare. The Pinehurst Village Council passed
Ordinance Amendment 7-3.8 on March 28, prohibiting the stopping of cars on
Kelly and Everette roads adjacent to Community Presbyterian Church and
Pinehurst Elementary School.This ordinance amendment, along with a related
ordinance that prohibits parking on much of Kelly and Everette, came about as
a result of complaints by neighborhood residents concerning the safety of
school children, as well as traffic congestion caused by school employees and
church members. For several years, residents on Kelly Road have complained
that parents stop in front of the school and drop their children off, causing
the children to be put at risk by walking on the public road and walking
between parked cars.However, parents such as Dee Dee Ross say that there have
never been any accidents caused by parents dropping off their children on
Kelly and Everette roads, and that the new ordinance has created brand-new
headaches."I’m frustrated because it’s really not clear to me what it is we’re
supposed to do," Ross said. "They want us to pull around here and pick up the
children, but they also don’t want us to block traffic down Dundee. But there
is no place to park. So we’re kind of left with our hands in the air — I don’t
know how to pick up my child."They’re (the school) handing out a flyer this
week telling us what to do, but right now I just try to arrive extra early.
It’s a real hassle."Echoing Ross’s sentiments is teacher assistant Connie
Barber. Barber contradicts the main reason put forth by the council for
passing the ordinance — child safety — telling The Pilot that in her 10 years
of employment with Pinehurst Elementary School, she’s never heard of a single
accident involving a school child.And Barber added that the ordinance has
actually created a new safety concern."Dundee Road is so backed up with
traffic that, in the event of a fire or emergency call, it’s going to be very
hard to get the emergency vehicle in and out," she said.However, Pinehurst
Elementary Principal Herb Cameron is working on a solution to the parking
problem. The school is building a new parking lot on campus to accommodate
teachers. And starting Monday, Cameron said, a new traffic pattern will be
established on campus to alleviate the traffic backup on Dundee Road.The new
traffic pattern involves switching the current parking area utilized by the
school buses with the drop-off point now used by the parents. Instead of
unloading two or three cars at a time, the new pattern should allow the
unloading of up to six cars at a time in the vicinity of the school’s
gymnasium.Cameron worked with the PTA to develop this plan, and he’s convinced
it will cut down on newly created traffic problems on Dundee."The big downside
of the ordinance is that since we’re an elementary school, a lot of parents
want to come in with their children, which is typical," he said. "But it’s
difficult to do now. As soon as we’re able to build a new parking lot and we
start rerouting traffic on Monday, we’ll have a better opportunity for people
to get in."The new traffic pattern is modeled on the parking program used to
good effect by West Pine Middle School.But some parents, such as Melanie
Harrison, believe the new ordinance has created a hardship for parents that
may never be corrected."It’s a mess," said Harrison as she led her son William
to class. "I think there could have probably been a better solution. It’s kind
of inconvenient early in the morning, but we’re trying to adjust."We really
don’t have much choice, do we?"

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