Dunwoody officials approved an agreement with the Georgia Department of Transportation on May 26, necessary for the city to receive about $2.5 million for a multi-use path on North Peachtree Road.
While council members unanimously approved the project framework, Mayor Lynn Deutsch asked the public works department to see if the proposed 12-foot-wide path could be narrowed.
“One of the concerns could be that we’re building it where the schools are … but also … people live across the street,” Deutsch said. “I think we ought to focus on crosswalks and safe crossings … I think this is an important project. It is just that I don’t think it needs to be 12 feet wide.”
Safety for students
The project includes a 0.75-mile shared-use path on the west side of the roadway for pedestrians and cyclists, extending north from Cotillion Drive at I-285 to Barclay Drive at Brook Run Park.
Because the project is federally funded, Deputy Public Works Director Michelle Hirose told the council that federally funded projects must meet a 10-foot-wide minimum.
“We’ll start out at the preferred 12-foot, but … utilities and right away, and other constraints along the corridor may require us to shift down to a 10-foot [path],” Hirose said. “We will definitely look at, like I said, capturing and using as much of the existing right of way as possible.”
Dunwoody is responsible for 20% of the cost for design, right-of-way acquisition, and construction. Hirose said the project’s total cost will be determined during preliminary engineering, but only $639,000 is needed to match existing grants.
The goal is to enhance connectivity between nearby communities, parks, and
green spaces, while providing a safer route for students traveling to Chesnut Elementary and Peachtree Middle schools.
During the discussion, Hirose said staff is planning an upgrade of the narrow sidewalk on the east side of the North Peachtree Road corridor. While there’s some community concern about the project, construction is at least a few years away.
The north end of the trail will connect to the Brook Run Park, while the south end ties into a bike and pedestrian underpass at I-285, planned as part of the Top End 285 managed lane project.
Disagreement in Dunwoody
Council Member Joe Seconder said he fully supports the North Peachtree Road path project, citing the location of two schools and park on the west side of the roadway.
“In 2019, when I ran for council, I said I wanted to help create a city where every child should be able to safely walk or ride their bikes to school,” Seconder said. “I will tell my bicycle friends that are in spandex that use the bike lane today that the bike lane is going away, and I’ll be fine with that.”
Council Member John Heneghan, absent from the May 26 meeting for a wedding anniversary, stated his opposition to the federally funded project in a blog post before the meeting. He said Dunwoody officials “are still chasing the dream to shoehorn 10- to 12-foot trails on every major road, even if there are sidewalks installed.”
Heneghan advocates against allocating city funds toward several path projects around the city, but he said he does support maintenance along the Dunwoody Trailway near Pernoshal Park.
“There doesn’t seem to be any concern that these overpriced, new paths will eat [into] the single-family front yards with trail lighting shining into their homes,” Heneghan wrote. “The sad part is that many on council know that 90% of the walkers to Chesnut & Peachtree walk on the east side of the street with a very tiny sidewalk that really needs an improvement. This is the priority need on this section of North Peachtree, but if we are going to chase federal funds, this application for the west side needs to be submitted ASAP and is therefore on the agenda now.”
