By Frank Scelzi

Credit is certainly owed to the Oak Harbor City Council in its decision to move forward with the revitalization and repair of our downtown district, a necessary project that will greatly contribute to the future success of Oak Harbor. However, the council’s decision to transform Pioneer Way into a one-way corridor will significantly impair Oak Harbor’s ability to thrive. Numerous considerations stemming from the implementation of a one-way plan have not been addressed. These considerations, verified by sufficient factual information, amply support the conclusion that Pioneer Way should remain a two-way thoroughfare.

As the main street through the downtown area, Pioneer Way, should not be altered without consideration of the impacts such changes would have on the connecting streets. According to Eric Johnson, city engineer, the council has not reviewed a plan concerning the changes that will need to be made to numerous streets connected to Pioneer Way.

Moreover, the council has not reviewed a plan concerning the details of the Pioneer Way construction. Specifically, there is no current plan for how or when construction will be performed. Such a construction plan is a necessity.

Additionally, neither the council nor the public have been presented with any data concerning the city’s financial losses during the construction period, including lost property taxes, utilities revenue, sales tax, and permit and license fees, etc. Due to the potential loss of businesses this information is important because such losses will be passed on to taxpayers if a long-term daytime construction plan is adopted. A plan for all of Pioneer Way’s connecting roads, impacts and cost of the construction, should be reconsidered.

In addition consideration needs to be given to traffic congestion issues that will result from a one-way. Many downtown merchants must receive their inventory from daytime deliveries made on Pioneer Way. Based upon my 23 years of experience working in material procurement and project management, a plan to have all deliveries made during a specific time period is not realistic. This will not only congest traffic on Pioneer Way, but it will also create a significant limitation on emergency vehicle access to Pioneer Way.

Furthermore, although the one-way plan calls for more parking, the parking raises certain safety and plan-approval issues. Under the one-way plan, all designated parking areas will exist on the north side of Pioneer Way. It is unlikely that patrons will walk out of their way to cross Pioneer Way at a crosswalk each and every time they desire to access the opposite side of the street. Perteet Engineering was never asked to revise its two-way plan to include sufficient parking comparable to that of the one-way plan, a viable option that would benefit all parties involved.

Pioneer Way property owners have already suffered loss of tenants and revenues due to the one-way decision. Traffic counts are always a main concern for new retail businesses. One way will significantly limit the traffic of potential customers traveling through the downtown area. The overwhelming amount of information opposing the one-way plan, submitted by retailers, lessors and the public in general, needs to be listened to.

We need to re-assess the one-way decision to avoid risking the livelihood of Pioneer merchants, building owners and taxpayers. A two-way plan with better parking allocations is the most beneficial option to improving our downtown area. The one-way “experiment” threatens to cost millions of dollars in taxes and lost revenues. After the one-way proves to be a tremendous detriment to the success of our downtown area, millions of dollars will be spent to convert Pioneer Way back to a two-way street, as is currently being done across our state and nation.

In my role as both a commercial building owner and merchant on Pioneer Way, I have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past two years on improvements to my building which, in turn, have resulted in improvements to Pioneer Way. Like most of the merchants and building owners on Pioneer Way, I support the council’s decision to improve our town. However, such improvements should only be made after the council considers all practical improvement options and approves a complete plan that incorporates the needs of our citizens and supports the success of our downtown area.

For more information, please go to www.oakharborstrong.org.

Frank Scelzi is a property owner, lessor and merchant.