City Council Approves Making Delmar Roundabout Permanent

The roundabout is here to stay.

The University City City Council approved measures Thursday morning to make the trial traffic design permanent.

A 6-0 vote approved a retrofitted design that will better fit with University City's historic civic plaza, the taking of a piece of Delmar Blvd. from St. Louis County to U City control and $50,000 in funding to get the process started.

The University City City Council held a special session at 8:30 a.m. Thursday. Councilwoman Paulette Carr was the only member of council not in attendance; the city clerk noted she was on vacation. 

Eight citizens attended the meeting. Two said the roundabout has made a serious improvement in the traffic flow in the area since it was implemented earlier this summer.

Sandra Ellis told the council she used the crosswalk when she walked to the meeting. 

"The cars stop for us," she said. "The crosswalks work well." 

Two residents spoke against the roundabout itself and the timing of the early morning meeting. Elsie Glickert told the council the citizens were "entitled to a public hearing on this subject."

The special session was called because the project needed Federal Transit Authority approval and there is a September deadline for getting the paperwork completed. 

Rich Wilson, Director of Public Works and Parks, told Patch the new historic design will only move the roundabout about two feet to the south to make it more symmetrical with the lions head gates and the center line of Delmar Blvd. 

"There will be raised pavement at the pedestrian crossings, making it safer for walkers and harder for cars to cut across like they can now," Wilson said.

The temporary design consists of about 1,400 feet of asphalt curbing along the edges of Trinity and Delmar and the edges of splitter islands. 

Concrete planters and reflective safety barrels are in the inner circle of the roundabout. New pavement markings and signs also were be added to guide pedestrian and vehicle traffic. 

Wilson said construction on the permanent roundabout likely won't take place until 2014. The city wants to keep the mock roundabout in place until new construction begins. 

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