Councillor Ben Hunter RE: Potential Georgetown Road Vacation Dear Councillor Hunter: I am writing in response to your inquiry about the proposed vacation of Georgetown Road from 16th Street to 25th Street. As you probably know, the Town of Speedway and the Speedway Redevelopment Commission have developed a master plan that will improve safety around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and will enhance economic development opportunities for the Town. As background for you, I have sent a letter to Scott Harris, Executive Director of the Speedway Redevelopment Commission noting the following: the City of Indianapolis supports the efforts to revitalize and redevelop the Town of Speedway and the area near the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Staff in the Indianapolis Department of Public Works Engineering Division has been working with Speedway representatives regarding the transportation recommendations. As the entity having operational jurisdiction of thoroughfares in Marion County, the Department of Public Works must ensure the safe design and operation of our transportation facilities and we must also ensure that any changes to the transportation network do not significantly hinder the public's ability to access their homes and businesses. With that understanding, we are in the process of evaluating the following: Phase I - realignment of 16th Street from the railroad viaduct on the east side of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway to Georgetown Road. Based on our analysis of the information provided by representatives from American StructurePoint, the Department of Public Works approved the realignment. Phase II - reconfiguration of the intersection of 16th Street, Crawfordsville Road and Georgetown Road. This reconfiguration is currently dependent upon the vacation/closure of Georgetown Road from 16th Street to 25th Street. Due to the regional significance to the transportation network, this request must undergo further analysis by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) and the Air Quality Conformity Group before approval can be granted. Phase III - vacation and closure of Georgetown Road from 16th Street to 25th Street. As noted above, due to the potential impact to the regional transportation network, further analyses are being conducted regarding traffic impacts to surrounding streets. Once the results of this analysis are available and the air quality conformity has been completed, we will work with the Department of Metropolitan Development to ensure that the proper processes and public hearings are completed. Traffic mitigation plans will also have to be developed and financial obligations agreed upon, once the results of the analyses are available. Regarding timing for Phases II and III, the Indianapolis MPO has noted that a "worst case" scenario for completion of the process is approximately October 15, 2008. This includes approximately 4 months (May 1st to August 30th) to complete the required analyses, solicit approvals from the regional participants and conduct a public hearing; plus another 45 days to conduct the vacation process, including a public hearing. With that background, we agree that a temporary closure of Georgetown Road could provide some useful information. (emphasis added) For the analysis to be successful, we would want to close the street for a minimum of two weeks. We recommend that a resolution endorsing the temporary closure be approved by the Indianapolis Board of Public Works in advance of the temporary closure. Regarding where the road could be closed (point 2 in the e-mail correspondence), DPW staff have not field verified any locations but the suggestions by (The Speedway Navigator) sound reasonable. Regarding the timing of this analysis, we are most concerned with how any closure would impact normal, average daily traffic, not traffic during major events. Therefore, it is our recommendation that we plan this test closure for late August, right after school resumes. In that way, we can examine "normal" traffic conditions and also meet the time frame established by the MPO and DMD for the vacation process.