YORK — At the York County Board of Supervisors’ first-of-the-year budget forum Tuesday night, three residents stood to speak and asked for funding for bike paths, sidewalks and the arts. Earlier in the meeting, members of the LEAD Historic Triangle class, which is sponsored by the Greater Williamsburg Chamber and Tourism Alliance, asked for funds for bus stop benches.
“We need to get away from thinking of bike routes as primarily recreational and provide more options for active commuting like walking and cycling as well as safe ways for kids to get to schools under their own power,” said Carol Bartram who lives in the Tabb area of York County.
Her husband, Scott Bartram, said the county had done a good job of making sure new developments have ways for people to get around without a vehicle, such as Coventry, Kiln Creek and Running Man, but that the county could do a better job of connecting neighborhoods and subdivisions with multi-use paths.
He said he often rides his bike to the hardware store but has to face all the construction on Route 17. He said there are plans to have a new bike path along Route 17 and that he hopes it comes to fruition. Carol Bartram said there were plans for a multi-use trail along Victory Boulevard that never came to be.
“I would like to see more support and follow-through with bike trails and multi-use trails and walking trails throughout the county,” Carol Bartram added.
Sheila Myers, chairwoman of the York County Arts Commission, said she wanted to see the county get closer to providing $1 of arts funding per resident. She said the county currently provides 26 cents per person. Increasing arts funding for programs such as Art at the River in historic Yorktown, and performances for students and the public can increase quality of life and bring more revenue to the county, Myer said.
Heather Cordasco a member of the LEAD Historic Triangle class, said the group wanted the county to help pay for a number of recycled-plastic benches along the Williamsburg Area Transit Authority bus routes, where 235 of 270 bus stops don’t have benches. The benches, including installation, would range from $1,700 to nearly $3,000, according to the group.
“A seat doesn’t seem like a lot but it means a lot until you haven’t had one,” Cordasco said.
Somers can be reached by phone at 757-298-5176.
