Camas’ plans for intersection draw big crowd

After 125 people turned out for a Feb. 26 open house on planned improvements at the intersection of Northeast Lake Road and Northeast Everett Street, the city of Camas has planned a second community meeting to help give the public more information about the intersection project.

The second open house will be held on April 9, at a time and location to be determined. Originally scheduled to take place at the Camas Public Library, city officials said that space will not accommodate the large crowd expected to attend the evening open house.

At issue is whether the city will make the intersection a traditional crossing with a traffic signal or a roundabout intersection.

Described by city leaders as “critical to the community,” the intersection connects Camas’ downtown and South Shore areas with the rapidly developing North Shore region. The intersection also provides access to the city’s popular Lacamas Lake and Round Lake recreational areas.

The first open house included a presentation by Greg Jellison of PBS Engineering and Environmental Inc., who updated the community members on the project’s progress and discussed the two main concepts for either a signalled intersection or a roundabout.

The second open house will include a recommended alternative and update the community about the project’s timeline.

“The city of Camas is excited to be working with residents of Camas and those who use and are affected by the Lake-Everett intersection to find a solution that gets everyone where they’re going as safely and efficiently as possible,” said Camas Engineering Manager James Carothers in a city press release sent to media this week.

The public has until March 11 to weigh in on the project via an online survey, at surveymonkey.com/r/TJLR3TS.

City officials said they were surprised by the large crowd at the Feb. 26 event, which was publicized by mailer to all Camas residents, a project sign near the intersection, an advertisement in this newspaper and posts on the city’s social media sites and main website.

The city will communicate the April 9 open house through similar mailings and advertisements.

“We are extremely pleased that so many community members attended the community open house in February,” Jim Hodges, the city’s project manager, said in the press release. “Hearing feedback and gathering ideas is an essential part of this process. We hope everyone comes out to provide input on the next phase of the project at the April 9 community open house.”

City engineers are working with a consultant team, led by PBS Engineering and Environmental, to develop alternatives, transportation and environmental analyses and conduct stakeholder and community outreach.

For more information about this project, visit cityofcamas.us/lakeroad.