Q.C. council votes to remove median

 The raised median in front of Russ' True Value Hardware store will soon be no more. Queen Creek's Town Council voted 5-2 to remove a raised median along Ocotillo Road between 203rd Street to the Queen Creek wash.

That median had been the subject of much debate, especially after Russ' True Value Hardware Store owner Russ Carlson pleaded with the council to not put the median in because it would keep customers from making left turns into his business's main entrance.

But the reason the issue was originally placed on the agenda had nothing to do with the hardware store. Instead, it was to officially approve a westbound left turn lane at Victoria Drive, a cut out giving access to a driveway between the hardware store and the Queen Creek Veterinary Clinic that was always intended to go in but wasn't constructed that way due to a flaw in the approved design.

With the approval of that left turn lane already on the agenda, the town decided to put removing the entire median on the table as well.

Councilman Craig Barnes said he had been to the area and talked to customers and business owners.

One complaint Barnes said he heard over and over was that the median blocked left turn access to a nearby medical clinic, which could pose a danger for people trying to make a U-turn to get treatment while injured.

"I know we've pushed safety," Barnes said. "And having broken several bones of my own, I know that would be an issue, making a U-turn into a doctor's office."

Most of the council voiced agreement immediately after Barnes made that argument, though Mayor Art Sanders did note during the vote the town had received a petition opposing the median with more than 600 signatures.

Carlson looked surprised when Barnes made his initial argument and grinned when the vote was finished. A few anti-median activists in the audience clapped, and several people approached Carlson to congratulate him and shake his hand immediately after the vote.

Councilman Jeff Brown voted against removing the median because he wanted more analysis and Councilman Gordon Mortensen voted no because he wanted to give a committee working on a traffic plan for the downtown area more time to bring back recommendations.

The removal will cost the town an estimated $115,000. The town has to put the project out for a bid before it has a definitive cost.