Editor’s note: This letter will also be presented during tonight’s council meeting regarding the decision on medians for Lewisville-Clemmons Road.

As I said I would, I have waited to make a decision about what to do on Lewisville-Clemmons Road until all available information had been presented. The fate of Lewisville-Clemmons Road has been planned for, discussed and debated for almost as long as we have been incorporated. This is the first time, and possibly the last time, we, as a community, will have a say in what could be done to improve driving conditions. Not to mention the fact that the cost is being borne by the DOT.

The DOT has given us a plan for that portion of the road where they feel, in their expert opinion, that changes will have the most impact on safety which is their No. 1 goal and should be ours. They have already said that the options A and B are not options they could approve but were plans they worked through to get to what they call option C, stating that medians at the south end of the road are not warranted at this time. Myth No. 1 as presented last year debunked — DOT is not proposing an unbroken median from I-40 to Hwy. 158

Two weeks ago, Dr. Madjd-Sadjadi presented a well-documented report stating that, in his opinion, this project should go ahead as planned on purely economic grounds. He also suggested three additions: the bulb to allow trucks to navigate turns, the addition of protected left turns and U-turns, and an additional right turn lane into Ramada Drive. He admitted, the obvious, that some businesses will be more impacted than others but in the main, they will even each other out. Myth No. 2 as presented last year debunked — a median will not kill all businesses.

Now is the time to put away all stop-the-median rhetoric that got some of you elected. Now is the time to evaluate the expert opinions of the DOT traffic engineers who have served N.C. well for decades. Now is the time to evaluate the report and suggestions, for which the village paid $5,000, from an expert in the field of economics. These experts are telling you that, from a safety and economic perspective, this project is the best solution they can envision.

What matters is the safety and economic welfare of the citizens of Clemmons. This is the only economically viable project that has been envisioned for Lewisville-Clemmons Road in 32 years. Given those parameters, there is only one conclusion — accept the DOT project and work with them to investigate the suggestions made by Dr. Madjd-Sadjadi. Not one fact or piece of evidence has been presented that contradicts the findings of these two expert groups so if you choose to vote no, the citizens of Clemmons deserve to know the basis for your decision.

— Mary Cameron
Former council member, Clemmons Village Council