WASHINGTON TERRACE — The trees in front of the Pleasant Valley Branch Library are safe.
After a meeting among officials from Weber County Library, Utah Transit Authority and Washington Terrace, the three entities came to an agreement that the library would not be a good place for an end-of-line stop, a place where bus drivers can pull over to take a break or make up for lost time.
In June, Washington Terrace officials approached the library regarding plans to expand Adams Avenue from two to four lanes, which would accommodate the growth in the area. The city hopes to begin the project by 2015.
The plan would require the removal of a number of trees and 140 feet of sidewalk from the front of the Pleasant Valley Branch Library, 5568 S. Adams Ave.
Designs for the expansion include two bus lanes to ease accessibility through the area.
To do this, designers want to include a bus turnout at Ogden Regional Medical Center and another at the library. The turnouts would make it easier to pick up and drop off passengers.
Weber County Library Director Lynnda Wangsgard said the original proposal would have meant the removal of some of the 150 trees, purchased and dedicated by residents, that cover the library’s grounds. The trees are a special variant of the American elm tree, developed to be resistant to Dutch elm disease.
The library is also concerned with issues of salt and snow accumulating in the area. Wangsgard said the library does not have sufficient staff to handle snow removal.
Library officials instead suggested the library could be a good location for a bus stop.
“We’re doing our best to accommodate a bus stop,” Wangsgard said, “but we’re not interested in hosting an end-of-the-line service.”
The bus stop would require the sidewalk and a retention basin to be moved, as well as the relocation of several trees.
“I’m trying to leave it to the experts, because I feel with the widening of the road, the public should be out of harm’s way because of the reworking of the front of the library building,” Wangsgard said.
If the library gets a stop, the officials would work with an architect to blend the bus stop into area.
“The building would still be beautiful and have curb appeal and allow us to host a bus stop there,” Wangsgard said.
The board will review the plan at its meeting at 5 p.m. Sept. 18 in the Weber County Main Library board room, 2464 Jefferson Ave., Ogden.
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