Mall Expansion Would Have Little Impact On Area

A larger NorthTown Mall would mean more traffic on adjacent streets but overall conditions may be improved as traffic shifts back to a widened Division Street and parking is added on the west side of the mall.

An engineering firm studying NorthTown’s proposed expansion concludes additional traffic would be the worst on Saturdays at Queen Street and Division, where there would be a 16 percent jump in trips.

Overall, however, new trips to NorthTown would not be enough to warrant road improvements, according to Entranco, the Bellevue, Wash., consultant hired by the mall’s owner, Sabey Corp.

And with construction on Division almost complete, other cars that detour on such nearby streets as Addison will return to Division, somewhat easing neighborhood congestion.

Sabey Corp. is seeking approval for 225,000 square feet of additional retail space, a 20 percent increase. Parking for 1,000 cars would be added, boosting the mall’s garage capacity to 5,300 spaces.

The current configuration puts 60 percent of parking along Lidgerwood, which forces cars onto some residential side streets east of NorthTown.

The expansion calls for a new twostory garage along Division linked to a new anchor store. A smaller garage would be attached to the existing structure at the mall’s northwest corner.

According to Laurent Poole, Sabey vice president, the expansion may not even mean that many more trips to the mall, but more time and money spent there from existing customers.

But using national standards for traffic, the expansion would net a total weekday travel increase of 16 percent (296 trips) and a Saturday trip increase of 14 percent (484 trips).

Already NorthTown is paying more than $3 million toward improvements along Division Street.

The expansion plans will not go to a public hearing, but the traffic impacts are being reviewed by city engineers as part of the state environmental policy act. Residents can review the plan and the city’s response to it by contacting the building department.

Among suggestions by NorthTown for better traffic control are:

Installation of a northbound stop sign at Lidgerwood and Queen.

A prohibition on left turns from Queen onto Lidgerwood.

A monitoring program in the neighborhood around NorthTown to determine the extent of cut-through traffic and the level of employee parking.

Though not included in the report, but suggested at the meeting, was the possibility of a cul-de-sac at Olympic to eliminate cross traffic entering the NorthTown garage. Consultants also said the city may want to look at speed bumps along residential streets and more turn restrictions to further stop cut-through traffic.

NorthTown is also suggesting that the city study resident-only parking in adjacent neighborhoods, even if it applies only during the Christmas season.

Homeowners would receive parking stickers for their cars and a parking pass for visitors. Those without the passes would be limited to one hour of parking.

The key to making the zone work, however, would be enforcement by the city, which is reducing services due to budget constrains.

, DataTimes