Traffic on Airport Road between Country Club Road and N.M. 599 may get a new look as the city works with Sites Southwest to design new medians for several main roads. Jim Weber/The New Mexican
Traffic on Airport Road between Country Club Road and N.M. 599 may get a new look as the city works with Sites Southwest to design new medians for several main roads. Jim Weber/The New Mexican
For most drivers and pedestrians, medians are an almost invisible part of an urban environment 鈥 unless they become defaced, damaged or overgrown and turn into an eyesore.
The city of 疯客直播 Fe hopes people will take notice of a new median improvement project along thoroughfares in gateway areas. The effort 鈥 overhauling about 30 medians 鈥 is aimed at highlighting the city鈥檚 history and culture while contributing to roadway safety and creating a template for future median construction.
鈥淎 lot of these roads were on the old 疯客直播 Fe Trail, and so there鈥檚 a lot of rich history you don鈥檛 really see when you enter the town and you don鈥檛 know about until you鈥檙e going to museums,鈥 said landscape designer Shasta Meehan with Albuquerque-based landscape architecture firm Sites Southwest.
鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to highlight these areas and make them more attractive but also more significant and celebratory to 疯客直播 Fe and the neighborhoods those entrances are by,鈥 she added.
The project includes medians along four key entryways to the city: along St. Francis Drive, from U.S. 84/285 north of the city to West Alameda Street; along the southern end of Cerrillos Road from Beckner Road to Jaguar Drive; on Airport Road from Country Club Road to N.M. 599; and on Old Pecos Trail from Rodeo Road to St. Michael鈥檚 Drive, city documents show.
Scott Overlie, a project administrator with the city Parks Division, said the work is intended 鈥渇or the beautification of the city鈥 but will also serve as a blueprint for future projects.
鈥淭he idea is to create templates that we might be able to utilize within the city for medians throughout [疯客直播 Fe],鈥 he said, adding this will help cut down on the costs of future median construction.
Money for the project is from city gross receipts taxes along with some state funding, Overlie said.
The city is working on the median designs with Sites Southwest, a company that previously conducted median work at the Albuquerque International Sunport.
After the design phase, the city will seek bids for construction.
Following a warranty period with the construction firm, the Parks and Open Space Division will be responsible for maintaining the overhauled medians. The agency, which conducts maintenance of dozens of parks and open spaces as well as medians citywide, has struggled with a high staff vacancy rate.
Meehan said Sites Southwest is approaching the new project 鈥渢hrough a lens of low-water-use plantings and low maintenance,鈥 which she said is a specialty of the design firm.
The company wants to use the project to showcase 疯客直播 Fe, which has much to offer when it comes to history and culture, she added.
The firm is in the process of making design maps to determine what types of plants, art and other features will be included in the medians, Meehan said.
The Parks Division also is partnering with the city Arts and Culture Department on how to incorporate art, Overlie said.
The city so far has held two early neighborhood notification meetings to alert residents in neighborhoods near the entryways about the project, and Overlie said more public meetings will be scheduled.
Meehan said residents who attended previous meetings seemed excited about the project and had 鈥渁 lot of opinions about how they want 疯客直播 Fe to be represented.鈥
Safety and environmental concerns were the top two things that came up repeatedly, Overlie said 鈥 people want to see how medians can be used to create safer roadways and prefer plants that require limited amounts of water.
鈥淧eople are very cognizant that we鈥檙e not creating anything that鈥檚 thirsty,鈥 he said.
He noted environmental factors, such as how medians could be used to help keep stormwater from flooding city streets during heavy rains, also are being considered.
The next step, Overlie said, is for the design team to come up with concepts that take into account feedback the city has received so far. There will be more opportunities for public input after the company presents its initial design proposals.
The overarching goal, Overlie said, is to help create a more cohesive look for the city.
鈥淎s people are coming in, we really want to be able to help identify, 鈥楾his is 疯客直播 Fe,鈥 鈥 he said.
Meehan said medians present great opportunities 鈥渢o show what 疯客直播 Fe is about.鈥
鈥淢edians are a big part of our driving and automobile landscape, and if we鈥檙e able to put something significant in them while also making them low maintenance, I think that has a lot to add to the city and the cultural landscape.鈥
