Arlington Park raises concerns about speeders

Arlington Park resident David Paris says there’s a problem with the stop signs at the intersection of Hyde Park Street and Clematis Place: They don’t work.

The intersection sits at the south entrance to the neighborhood park, which means it gets a good amount of foot traffic. It also sits just west of Tuttle Avenue, which means cars driving along the road are mostly heading onto or coming off of a larger, nonresidential road.

The confluence of these factors means the intersection has been a safety hazard for years, Paris said.

“Many, many people fear walking across that intersection,” he said. “I see them wait until they know for sure a car is going to stop or even slow down before attempting to start out across either street there.”

Paris reached out to City Commissioner Liz Alpert June 28 to share his concerns. He isn’t alone. Nathan Wilson, vice president of the Arlington Park Neighborhood Association, said residents throughout the area have reported similar problems on roads linked to bigger thoroughfares.

The neighborhood reached out to the Sarasota Police Department earlier this year in an attempt to have a larger traffic control effort in the neighborhood.

“Any of the streets that connect from 41 to Tuttle and from Bahia (Vista Street) south are getting worse,” Wilson said.

“Many, many people fear walking across that intersection.” — David Paris

Paris’ concerns ended up in the hands of the Sarasota Police Department traffic unit. Following complaints from residents, officers typically spend time investigating the validity and severity of any issues, SPD spokeswoman Genevieve Judge said in an email.

Prior to Paris’ message, the department hadn’t seen the Hyde Park and Clematis intersection as a point of concern.

“This particular intersection is not considered a problem one,” Judge said. “However, our officers will be in the area more and will be monitoring the intersection for speeding and stop sign violations.”

Last week, Paris said the city re-painted the stop lines at the intersection. He believes more significant changes are necessary for the problem to be addressed, including additional lighting and signs warning drivers that a stop is ahead.

With more eyes on the intersection, he’s hopeful city and police officials will become aware of the issues he’s witnessed — and that steps will be taken to ensure cars actually come to a stop.

“Every time I see police waiting for someone to run the stop, it takes only minutes before they pull someone over,” Paris said. “I am convinced that if we were west of the Trail, it would have been taken care of immediately.”