Politics & Government

City Council Lays Out Concerns for Responsibility of Rt. 410

Residents still think the city should keep ownership.

Takoma Park City Council discussed terms related to the responsibility for Rt. 410 within the Takoma Park city limits Monday night. 

Deputy City Manager Suzanne Ludlow laid out six points the city wanted to make clear before starting negotiations with the State Highway Administration.

1. Controls are put in place so SHA cannot expand 410 in Takoma Park.

Find out what's happening in Takoma Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

2. SHA would be responsible for daily and long-term maintenance. 

3. Location and design of pedestrian facilities be dictated by the city.

Find out what's happening in Takoma Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

4. Permits for right of way to be dictated by the city.

5. Specifications for signage are adopted that allow for smaller sign size and font size that are more appropriate for the narrow right-of-way and slower speeds on that segment of 410.

6. City and SHA work together on signal timing issues and pavement markings.

The six provisions were directions for negotiations, Ludlow said.

Back in November, the State Highway Administration came to the conclusion that, after 54 years of assumed state ownership, the city actually owned 410 in Takoma Park, not the state. So the SHA offered a deal to take over ownership and fix up the road, which has been in disrepair for years.

However Ludlow said SHA has not shown any definitive documentation as to who is responsible for the road.

"I'm perplexed by the lack of documentation," she said Monday night at the council meeting. "SHA doesn’t really know what happened in the 20s and 30s when it was being worked on."

The city has not put forth a response to the deal presented in November.

We want to know where our goals and priorities are," said City Attorney Susan Silber. "As we enter negotiations I have to say there are many unique factors including maintenance and documentation of ownership."

Silber also said she spoke to other city attorneys in other municipalities and they told her to be careful when negotiating. Silber did not elaborate on what that meant.

For councilmembers, permitting and keeping 410 from getting widened were the big issues.

"Going forward permitting and day-to-day maintenance is the crucial part," Ruben Snipper (Ward 5) said. "We need some kind of control over permitting."

In several public meetings,  to speak in favor of the city keeping ownership of 410. And many of the residents who came to speak Monday continued to voice concern over how the SHA has left 410 over the last 54 years. Residents said the city needs control.

Controlling speeds, types of vehicles, signal timing, traffic calming and drainage were all issues that concerned residents.

The council will continue discussing what points to clear up before going into negotiations with the state, including consulting other municipalities and the Maryland Municipal League.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here