By Jeb Bladine • President / Publisher • 

Jeb Bladine: Make sure that the bypass is a bypass

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Comments

Don Dix

Jeb
3 Mile Lane was always connected to 3rd Street, long before Hwy 18 attached to both ends. I am under the impression that the bypass was to allow those who did not want to drive through Mac (either by way of 99W or 3 Mile Lane access) the option to drive around the city.

When driving through Mac, with the exception of the tails of 99W, there is not a street that 40 MPH is legal -- which is the lowest legal speed on 18 -- and still a quicker way beyond Mac.

Not sure the worry is worth the wrinkles.

PAO

The bypass issue is a concern to me because that is where the majority of our critical medical services are located. Anything that impedes traffic getting to those services needs to be carefully considered.

And Jeb, our planning department has shown a strong history of ignoring the more thoughtful, long-term planning of previous civic leaders. I can only hope our city council steps up and protects McMinnville's future.

Oregonian

We had a plan for a real bypass. It involved an Australian firm that proposed a highway from the airport area of Mac to hook up at I-5 near Ehlen road, south of Wilsonville. The road would be a toll. It would take 50 years for the toll to pay off the cost and from that point on, the county would split the toll collection with the builder 50/50. Citizens freaked out over the toll and the idea was rejected. Dissenters claimed the Australians couldn't be trusted and the idea was too "big" for Yamhill County.

Six months later, China hired the exact same Australian firm to build $10 billion worth of toll roads.

What a missed opportunity for us. It would have transformed the area for a hundred years.

Spartan

Oregonian - The problem with that solution was that it wasn't Leslie Lewis' idea. It was a much better idea for sure and as the crow flies it would have made way more sense. But, the politicians certainly know better don't they. Just look at the mess at the bypass/219 interchange. That was politician's (Starrett) idea. Gobbled up prime farmland. Take a good look at that interchange for the next phase. It is much more complex, complicated, and expensive. There seems to be no common sense with this ridiculous bypass. Apparently ugly and expensive monstrosities like the one on the West end of Dundee are preferred.

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