Is it true that a tree in the roundabout by Las Animas School cost the City of Gilroy $100,000 as we have heard recently? Thank you.
Red Phone checked into this speculation, good caller, and found it to be bogus. The roundabout is at the intersection of West Luchessa Avenue and Thomas Road, near Las Animas School. From Gilroy Traffic Engineer Henry Servin, Red Phone found landscaping for this roundabout—including the tree—was donated to the city by Tim Filice, one of the owners of the Glen Loma Ranch Development. According to Servin, the tree is of the Arbutus Marina species, a hybrid created in Gilroy long ago for one of the San Francisco World Expositions. It is a fruit-bearing tree and extremely tolerant to drought.
When asked how the city decides which intersections get roundabouts, Servin explained, “After doing traffic engineering studies including traffic monitoring, the city has four options. We can do nothing, install stop signs, install roundabouts or install traffic signals. People in general do not like to wait for traffic lights. Roundabouts cost about one third the cost of traffic signals.”
And from a city presentation, roundabouts are safer for pedestrians because vehicles move at a slower speed, safer for bicyclists because of wider shoulders, have a faster flow of traffic and result in fewer accidents.
Currently under construction and scheduled for completion this year are roundabouts at Miller and Santa Teresa, and at Cobblestone and Third Street.
