Letter to Cleveland Heights City Council

On April 23, 2010, this letter was submitted to The Municipal Committee, Cleveland Heights City Council, Bonita Caplan, Chair

Dear Ms. Caplan,

My wife Linda and I have lived at 1590 South Taylor Road for the past 28 years. We have seen many changes. All four of our children attended Cleveland Heights schools and have since moved on as adults.

We decided to purchase our home. We like Cleveland Heights, but are very concerned and feel that the neighborhood is in severe decline. We feel at times that we live in a battle zone.The high speed of the traffic on South Taylor(especially in our block, between Mayfield and Euclid Heights Blvd.), is really getting dangerous, extremely loud and unsafe, considering my wife Linda is legally blind (with that being said...thank you for the sign that the city placed on our street alerting drivers to be cautious of a blind person).

The condition of South Taylor and North Taylor(from Mayfield to the East Cleveland border) is filled with deep potholes, which are unavoidable and extremely dangerous. We travel around our own street to minimize the potential damage to our vehicles, but of course that is impossible, since we eventually must drive on South Taylor to pull into our driveway to enter our home.

We really would like to remain residents in Cleveland Heights; however, the condition of our street needs to change for the better. Please reply to "all" with what infrastructructure improvements are planned for South Taylor Road and a reasonable timetable for start and finish of construction.

One other concern we have, is the increased amount of commercial truck traffic on South Taylor Road, which we feel should be restricted to automobile traffic only, because South Taylor Rd. is strictly residential in the block we live in. I realize that the trucks need access to the Stores at Severance Town Center, but we also know that there are several access points from Mayfield Road that these transport vehicles can use to pickup and make deliveries.

Please know that we love our community and want what is best for the people of Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

Sincerely George and Linda Jenkins

Friday April 23,2010  12:07 PM

This letter is on file at Cleveland Heights City Council, we got a response from Mr. Montlack and a follow up call from another council member. At the time we were told there wasn't a plan, however the idea was being entertained.

I'm sharing this letter to encourage every resident of Cleveland Hts., to ask questions be involved with the part of the plan that is designed for your neighborhood. It could be in the form of a letter, phone call, or attend City Council Meetings.

Since this letter was submitted I have had the opportunity to meet five new families with school age children, who recently moved within our block. The parents have expressed their concern about the potholes and high speed traffic. On June 26, 2011 there was a serious accident involving five cars. One of the vehicles flipped over and landed on the lawn while two young boys were mowing the front lawn of their home, leaving them fearful and amazed because they thought they were witnessing a high speed Police chase. Our assumptions were the same.

Have a great day!