Barricade up for discussion at March 17 council meeting

Sammamish City Council will further discuss how city staff will conduct a safety survey and establish a timeline for when staff should present this information to the council.

Sammamish City Council will revisit the 42nd Street Opticom barricade issues at the March 17 meeting at 6:30 p.m. in city hall.

They will further discuss how city staff will conduct a safety survey and establish a timeline for when staff should present this information to the council.

Many Sammamish residents were left to wonder after the Feb. 17 city council meeting what exactly will come of the 42nd Street barricade.

City clerk Melonie Anderson said she received about 15 calls and emails from city residents — and council members — who were unclear on the council’s action two weeks ago.

The Sammamish City Council passed a resolution at the Feb. 17 meeting to keep the barricade off the 2015-16 budget, but also instructed city staff to produce a safety study, a project timeline and any mitigation costs associated with addressing the barricade.

These actions conflict, as it would require city time and money to investigate the issue.

Council did not establish a timeframe for when city staff should complete the study, which was a concern for citizens.

City Manager Ben Yazici addressed the conflicting direction at Tuesday’s meeting.

“Hold back on the study,” City Manager Ben Yazici recommended to the council during the March 3 meeting. “We have no resources on the staff side.”

The council, on Tuesday, was not unanimous in its decision to postpone the study until the next biennium, as the city manager recommended, which is why the discussion was tabled until the March 17 meeting.

The council opted not to discuss the issue at next week’s meeting because two councilmembers will be absent.

If council members vote to direct funds to the safety study during the 2015-16 budget year, they will have to shift priority on city projects.