Pocatello altering 6th Avenue to create street parking for county business
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POCATELLO — With an eye on safety and convenience, additional street parking will be created near the Bannock County offices on 6th Avenue.
At a recent meeting, the Pocatello City Council voted unanimously to vacate a 300-foot portion of 6th Avenue between East Clark and East Center Street, according to a new release from Bannock County. That portion of the road will be converted to one-way traffic, and diagonal parking will be added to serve the Bannock County Courthouse, Elections Office and Annex.
“We’ve found that county services have started to develop into somewhat of a campus. Because of that, there’s a fair amount of foot traffic that crosses 6th Avenue,” Director of Bannock County Planning and Development Hal Jensen said in a news release. “Vacating this chunk of the road will improve the safety for both the public coming to the courthouse as well as our employees.”
At least two people have been struck by passing vehicles on that portion of road since 2018, the release says. One of them suffered significant injury.
“Every day, I watch people park across the street and walk to the courthouse because we don’t have adequate parking,” county commissioner Ernie Moser adds in the release. “I fear for their safety every time because I’ve seen so many close calls. We had to do something to protect our employees and the public.”
Once the changes are completed, traffic will be allowed to travel south, from Clark to Center Street. Parking for the county campus, including ADA spots, will be added on the east side of the road, in front of the annex.
“We recognize the new traffic flow may be inconvenient for drivers at first, but the safety it will provide pedestrians is worth it,” Jensen said.
The adoption of the approved decision to vacate the portion of 6th Avenue has been added to the docket for Thursday’s Pocatello City Council meeting. Once it is adopted, the county will begin the planning and design process. A timetable for completion will not be available until that time.