https://www.lancasterbee.com/article...nsion-project/

Plans to extend West Main Street in the Village of Lancaster will re-establish West Main Street as a part of the central village’s downtown area, said Mike Leydeker from Wendel, an architectural and engineering firm in Western New York.

Leydeker and Sheila Ransbottom from Wendel presented proposed designs for the project at a work session Monday with the Lancaster Village Board and community members.

“There’s quite a bit more space for pedestrians, and that’s sort of what’s driving this,” Leydeker said. “We’re looking at developing a complete street and enhancing pedestrian access.”

Currently, West Main Street is a one-way street. This project will convert the one-way street into a two-way street to accommodate vehicles, pedestrians, bicycles, parking and streetscape features. There would be 11-foot shared asphalt vehicle and bicycle travel lanes, 8-foot parking lanes on both sides of the street, and pedestrian zones with concrete sidewalks and trees on both sides of the street, between 14- and 16-feet wide.

“Essentially we’re trying to re-establish the character and continue some of the themes that have been developed by the village on Central Avenue,” Leydeker said.

There would also be room on some spots on the sidewalk for businesses to have outdoor seating, Ransbottom said.

“There needs to be a 5-foot path for pedestrians,” Ransbottom said. “There’s definitely still going to be room.”

The project also creates an addition of a mini roundabout at the new intersection of West Main and Aurora streets. Leydeker said mini roundabouts have been gaining in popularity.

“Roundabouts are much more efficient than stop signs or traffic signals as far as maintaining traffic flow,” Leydeker said.

The total estimated cost of the project is $2.5 million.

With the proposed plan, the current angled parking will be eliminated and turned into parallel parking. Leydeker said they would lose around half of the spaces they have now.

Trustee Paul Rudz spoke to merchants on West Main Street about the extension. One merchant expressed concern about delivery trucks shutting down the street.

“That’s something we’ll have to address during final design,” Leydeker said. “Maybe a portion of those spaces can be dedicated to deliveries.”

With the new designs, Leydeker said cars will have the opportunity to move around delivery trucks in the lane, as opposed to now, when a delivery truck blocks the entire street.

All of the ideas for the project have been formulating for years, Trustee Lynne Ruda said.

The goal for the project is to have construction completed by December 2020, to meet a deadline set by the state due to funding. Leydeker said they are on schedule to have a bid out for the project by the end of this year.

“What we’re looking for is long-term sustainability,” Leydeker said. “If we’re picking a color for concrete or something like that, it’s going to be something that will be readily available down the road.”

Information and updates about the project, as well as renderings are posted on the Lancaster Village website, www.lancastervillage.org.