[EyesOnIvy] "Let's talk some common sense talk"

[Brian Wheeler]

I have been getting a growing number of emails asking me how on earth the
County could be nearing approval of the Faulconer Construction project given
the nature of the oversized construction vehicles they would be repairing in
a huge garage facility near Murray Elementary and the dangerous intersection
at Tillman Rd. and Route 250.  Very good question.  I think someone who
captured this issue quite well was former Sheriff George Bailey, one of the
2 votes the Ivy Community received in our favor when we appealed this
project before the Board of Zoning Appeals and lost 3-2, on day that came to
be known as 9/11.
 
Brian Wheeler
 
http://lists.bnsi.net/pipermail/eyesonivy/2001-September/000019.html
 
Albemarle County Board of Zoning Appeals Hearing
September 11, 2001

 
George Bailey, Board of Zoning Appeals:
Mr. Chairman, I live in that district.  I live pretty close to all of them.
I think I may as well go first.  You heard a lot of lawyer talk here today.
Let's talk some common sense talk.

You see a picture of a little car going up the road with probably some three
children beside the road and let's say here comes one of these great big
trucks.  It speaks plain to us that pictures of the trucks over there in
evidence meets this little car.  Who's going to get over in the side ditch?
The children, the mother and the little car will get in the side ditch so
that big truck can come by.

It sort of boils down to heavy industry or light industry and common sense
speaking I just feel like... nothing there would be light industry.  It's
heavy industry.  Any time you've got equipment as big as that, you've got a
field here that must have 20 great big earthmovers in it, that's heavy
industry.  Common sense will tell you that's heavy industry.  That's not
light industry, and this little road--  I walked to school on that little
road and it hadn't changed much.  I walked it yesterday and 1934, '35 and
'36.  It's just about the same road.  It might have been resurfaced and it
was fine then because we had little '34, '35 and '36 automobiles.  We didn't
have this big equipment, earth moving equipment going up and down that
road...

A piece of equipment coming out from [the Ivy Business Park], you've got to
come up grade, if you go left or right, it's near impossible to get into
250. All of those roads going into 250 are not safe for heavy equipment.  I
was a law man from 1955 to 1987 and I worked many accidents down there at
Ivy and I worked more of them up there where you cross at Turner Mountain,
676 and 250, many many accidents between cars.  The speed limit's 55 miles
an hour.  I just don't believe that heavy equipment can get out into 250
safe at any of those intersections...  They get one of that long piece of
equipment out entirely, I think it's impossible to get it out there safely,
so we're jeopardizing everybody that travels on 250's life when you travel
that road with all of this equipment coming back and forth into 250.

Let's say this; buses--we know a lot of buses travel on Morgantown Road and
you meet some of this heavy equipment, pictures in evidence, you meet at any
point at all on this road, especially along Murray School there were the
children are, who's going to get in the ditch?  I ask you--who's going to
get in the ditch when you meet that piece of--  I would never take a chance
on heading onto that big equipment.  I'd get in the ditch and let him come
by and that's what you're going to do... if you meet that big piece of
equipment on that road, you'll have to get in the ditch and let it come by. 
 
I guarantee, they're not going to slow up and let you come by.  I just can't
see it... and it should not be allowed in this district. 
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