Southside Village traffic troubles residents

Donna Ciemny lives on Orange Avenue near Southside Village on a portion of a residential street she says some treat like a drag strip.

That’s why Ciemny spoke at a City Commission meeting Dec. 2 and asked officials to address what she sees as a significant safety issue.

“Southside Village, with its shops and restaurants surrounded by lovely neighborhoods, is quaint and a pleasure to visit,” Ciemny said to the commission. “Unless you live in Southside Village, where the speeding issue has become intolerable.”

Her concerns are focused on a segment of Orange Avenue south of a speed bump near Hawthorne Street and north of a stoplight at Hyde Park Street, where Orange Avenue transitions into McClellan Parkway. Ciemny said drivers tend to speed up for the few blocks where there are no obstructions in their path.

“I can see it first-hand,” Ciemny said. “I was out there taking pictures of the solar-powered speed indicators, and I witnessed someone going 45 mph in a 25.”

Ciemny isn’t the first resident living near Southside Village to complain about traffic problems. In 2017, residents on Hyde Park Street in South Poinsettia Park complained about drivers using the residential road south of Hillview Street as a cut-through, sometimes speeding and ignoring a stop sign.

Although she said her neighbors share her concerns, Ciemny’s appearance at the commission meeting was her first effort to make officials aware of the speeding issues. City Engineer Alex DavisShaw said staff hadn’t previously heard from residents on Orange Avenue, but there is a traffic-calming program in place if citizens are interested in organizing and slowing down drivers in their neighborhood.

As a first step toward evaluating traffic-calming measures, the city asks residents to gather signatures from neighbors interested in addressing speeding in the area. In addition to serving as a petition, the city asks residents to pledge not to exceed posted streets in neighborhoods.

“Our first line of protection is getting buy-in from the folks to live there, to get them to agree they should be driving the speed limits themselves,” DavisShaw said.

DavisShaw said the city has measured speeds on other streets near Southside Village. The traffic study process examines drivers traveling at the 85th percentile of speeds along a street. DavisShaw said the city’s metrics show drivers mostly traveling at or near the posted speed limit of 25 mph on streets south of Hillview.

Ciemny already has some thoughts on how to address speeding issues near her home. She suggested the Sarasota Police Department could emphasize enforcement on the road. She also proposed adding speed tables, improving signage and adjusting traffic lights to get more cars to come to a stop on Orange Avenue.

DavisShaw said the city is careful about making changes on a smaller street segment that could affect the broader traffic network.

“We do need to make sure there’s buy-in from the community,” DavisShaw said.

As she continues to pursue changes on the street in front of her home, Ciemny wants to make sure drivers know Orange Avenue is a residential street — and to make sure they drive like it.

“People have a tendency to assume it’s like Osprey and [that] they can do 30,” Ciemny said. “And when it’s posted 30, they’re doing 40.”