Versions of the 2022 circular rounded intersection where Holland meets I-75 in Buena Vista could be coming to the City of Saginaw and to Saginaw Township during years to come, but not in the immediate future.
These also would be along the M-46 route. Locations would be:
- Holland at Outer Drive in the heart of BV.
- Holland at Warren and Sheridan and Remington also at Sheridan, possibly an adjacent trio.
- Rust Avenue at South Washington, on the border of the Celebration Square central parks.
- Gratiot at Center in the township. (Not State at Center. This is M-46.)
The area at Gratiot and Stephens on Old Town’s southwest edge is deemed the city’s worst, but the odd street angles preclude a roundabout option in the Fordney Park area.
Some motorists like and appreciate roundabouts from the first encounter, others gradually learn their way, and others remain befuddled. Traffic experts say that at the start an increase in fender benders may occur, but the long-term result is fewer crashes, especially the most severe ones that occur with right turns or merges into traffic.
Crashes claimed a count of 37,000 lives last year, 1,000 in Michigan. About 40 percent take place at intersections.
Representatives from MDOT, the Michigan Department of Transportation, presented a study to the City Council that is so preliminary, that funding at this point has not even been lined up. They promised public hearings prior to moving ahead.
An MDOT web page states:
“A roundabout is a circular intersection design increasingly being used by MDOT. Roundabouts are typically smaller than traffic circles, and drivers must yield to vehicles already in the roundabout before entering.
Roundabouts have been proven to safely decrease traffic delays and congestion. When selected and designed correctly, roundabouts can handle a high volume of traffic, including commercial trucks and large emergency vehicles.”
To review a comprehensive study by Bridge Michigan, click here.
Revived Friendship Games?
City Manager Tim Morales reported that Saginaw may have an opportunity to form a sister city with a Canadian community, but he did not mention the former Friendship Games with Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.
Morales simply noted that the state of Michigan and the province of Ontario currently are aiming for a stronger international commercial trade arrangement, and he accepted an Ontario representative’s invite to find a Canadian town to partner with Saginaw.
The original 1965 sister city arrangement with Tokushima, Japan, remains the strongest, reflected in the tea house and garden across from the waterworks. In contrast, contacts have been off-and-on with Awka, Nigeria, and with Juarez and then Zapopan, Mexico.
Morales said that while other ties may continue, a connection with an Ontario town in “closer proximity” would allow more activity to take place.
Saginaw leaders did not describe Sault Ste. Marie as a sister city, but the Friendship Games thrived from 1977 to 1999 through an exchange of sports and activities for children, teens and adults. Youngsters were welcome in host “billet” homes. Saginaw Township’s similar Can-Amera Games with Cambridge, a Toronto suburb, lasted from 1972 to 2006. Declines in participation officially were cited as reasons for both events dying.
The current talks with the Ontario rep are not directly tied to the Memorial Cup Canadian junior hockey championship that is coming next spring to The Dow Event Center, home of the hosting Saginaw Spirit franchise, but Morales said a mutual goal is to announce a sister city during the weeklong spotlight.
Clerk stepping down
Janet Santos, city clerk since 2012, quietly informed Morales that she is retiring at the end of the month.
Council members one-by-one praised her efforts, especially in promoting voter registration and efficient elections with results reported in a timely manner. These functions became increasingly scrutinized with Donald Trump’s national claims of voter fraud.
The current council group kept Santos especially busy with continual back-and-forth over extending the three-minute limit for public speakers. She eventually responded this summer with a three-minute clock, bulky with an intent for clear sight-lines, that has taken up half of her desk space to the right of the podium.
Morales joked about the matter to begin his remarks. Click here to hear his thank-you tribute.
The manager will appoint the new clerk with no official vote needed. Under the City Charter, the council is like a board of directors and the manager’s role is that of CEO.
