Ep. 3: What is the Stantec Design?

In this in-depth episode of Wake Up Washington, host Ellen Brabo takes listeners inside the Stantec design—the community-driven alternative to the NCDOT widening proposal for 15th Street.

You’ll learn how the City of Washington partnered with internationally respected design firm Stantec to develop a safer, more accessible, and people-focused plan for the 15th Street corridor—one that reflects local values and keeps property impacts to a minimum. With input from over 600 residents, the Stantec plan features:

• A center turn lane to reduce crashes
• Sidewalks and a 10-foot multi-use path
• Landscaped medians, crosswalks, and traffic calming
• All built within the existing 60-foot right-of-way

This episode breaks down the plan’s history, its collaborative public engagement process, and why it remains a viable—and better—option today.

View the full plan here.

Transcript

Ellen Brabo: 0:00

Hey, y'all. Welcome back to Wake Up Washington. I'm Ellen Brabo, host of this podcast and coordinator of the Fifteenth Street Coalition. Today, we're digging into something most people haven't had the chance to really see, the Stantec design, the community led alternative to the NCDOT widening plan. This episode is longer than usual because we're walking through what the plan included, why it came to life, who helped shape it, and how it offers a better solution to the challenges we face along the Fifteenth Street corridor. Back in 2016, NCDOT rolled out their original widening proposal for Fifteenth Street. It was a four lane, divided highway with a raised median, no bike lanes, and sidewalks only if the City of Washington agreed to pay extra. Residents and business owners pushed back hard. The city council voted twice to reject that design. And in 2020, the City of Washington made a choice. If NCDOT wouldn't design something that reflected our values, we would. So the city hired Stantec, an internationally respected engineering firm, to create a locally rooted community informed design, and they brought the community in every step of the way. Over 600 residents engaged through surveys, public forums, virtual meetings, interactive mapping, and focus groups with business owners, emergency services, and hospital staff. The result, a complete streets redesign that respected Washington's charm, stayed within the existing 60 foot right of way, and prioritized people over pavement. Let's talk about what complete streets really means. A complete street is a street for everyone, people walking, biking, driving, and using mobility aids. It's not a one size fits all, and that's the point. It's tailored to the community. And for those of you who may be unfamiliar with the Stantec design, we want to provide you with a simple breakdown of what makes this design so different from NCDOT's u fifty eight sixty. The proposed design from NCDOT for Fifteenth Street prioritizes vehicle speed and road width over neighborhood integrity, business access, and housing stability. It incorporates four eleven foot travel lanes and a raised 17 foot six inch concrete median. The current right of way along Fifteenth Street is 60 feet. The Stantec design proposal stays within the existing right of way. However, the NCDOT design proposes widening to nearly 95 feet. That's a 35 foot expansion, and that space has to come from somewhere. In this case, it comes from people's front yards, parking lots, and in some cases, entire buildings and homes. The NCDOT design causes significant property loss, while the Stantec design would have minimal impact on private property. Let's just take one example. Bergau Insurance located at the corner of Jackson Street and Fifteenth Street. If the NCDOT design moves forward, Bergdahl will lose all of its client parking. And with that loss, they will no longer meet code requirements to operate a commercial business. This is a long standing, locally owned company, part of the fabric of Washington. And the result of this design is that they'll be forced out, and they're not the only ones. Businesses up and down the corridor, particularly those that are close to the road and without large setbacks, they'll be impacted in similar ways. Additionally, the NCDOT design eliminates the possibility of making a left hand turn into or out of majority of the side streets and businesses by implementing the 17 foot six inch concrete median. This forces residents and customers to drive past their destination, make a u-turn, and drive back. The Stantec design offered a more balanced approach with a modified three lane concept incorporating landscaped medians in sections of the corridor in which non signal intersections could result in a head on head collision and allowing for a center two way left turn lane along the remainder of the street. Let's remember what we're solving for. Fifteenth Street is a 48 foot wide, four lane, undivided road. Drivers turning left often block travel lanes, creating dangerous weaving. There are no bike lanes. There are no sidewalks. There are no safe crossings for kids, parents, seniors, anyone on foot or wheels. Between 2014 and 02/2018, '90 '4 percent of crashes were angle, rear end, or left turn related. The crash rate on Fifteenth Street is higher than the state average for similar roads. Despite that, the corridor still operates more like a three lane road because of driver behavior. People are already slowing down to turn. The Stantec design doesn't fight this reality. It works with it. By creating a center turn lane, traffic becomes more predictable and safer. That alone can dramatically reduce crashes. Add to that clear sidewalks, bike paths, and crossings, and you have a corridor that works for everyone. Let me try to walk you through this visually. Imagine you're standing at the corner of Fifteenth Street and Carolina Avenue, and you're looking east. Instead of four straight lanes of car traffic, you'd see two lanes, one eastbound and one westbound, a landscaped median with a turn pocket. On the north side, a 10 foot multiuse path with room for bikes, strollers, scooters, and more. And on the south side, a safe, wide sidewalk. Planted buffers between the street and walkers to reduce heat, increase safety, and improve beautification. Mid block crossings with hawk beacons at Van Norden And Holloman Streets, and enhanced intersections with massed arm signals, brick pattern crosswalks, and ADA access at Carolina Avenue, Minuteman Lane, Washington Street, and Market Street. Every detail from lighting to landscaping to signal timing was designed to make Fifteenth Street safer, more beautiful, and more connected. One of the most impressive parts of this plan was the process itself. This wasn't a consultant dropping in with a prefab design. It was a real partnership with Washington residents at the center, and it showed. Residents said things like, this could turn out to be the most appealing mile and a half in North Carolina, and I don't drive. I could finally be able to walk or bike to work. You might be wondering about the cost. At the time of publication in 2021, the entire Stantec design, that includes roadway improvements, sidewalks, bike path, lighting, landscaping, and even sewer relocation, was estimated at $12,500,000. Compare that to the $38,600,000 NCDOT Super Street plan. That would significantly impact more than 40 homes and businesses? The NCDOT Super Street plan removes left turn access from all locations practically, and it increases traffic speed and reduces walkability. With the Stantec plan, you get a community minded solution, traffic calming measures to improve the safety of the corridor, minimal impact to private property, a street that supports small business visibility, and increased pedestrian access and safety, and all at the fraction of the cost. Here's the thing. Most people in our community have never seen this plan. It was adopted by the Washington City Council in 2021, but never advanced by the RPO. It was never scored. It was dismissed by NCDOT without a proper study, and yet it reflects exactly what we say that we value, thoughtful growth, walkability, preserving small town charm, investing in infrastructure that serves everyone, not just drivers passing through town. We don't need to reinvent the wheel. We already created the design. Now we need the political will to bring it forward again. If this is the first time you're hearing about the Stantec plan, you're not alone. You can download the full design plan through the link in our show notes. The plan contains beautiful renderings of what is possible with thoughtful design. I'm Ellen Rabo, and on behalf of the Fifteenth Street Coalition, thank you for waking up with us. If you found today's episode helpful, here's what you can do right now. Visit fifteenthStreetCoalition.com and sign the petition in favor of a community minded solution. Share this episode with a friend or neighbor and follow Wake Up Washington so you don't miss future episodes. And help us continue building momentum for a safer, smarter, and more connected Washington.