The Laramie City Council voted 5-4 on Tuesday in support of construction of a Harney Street viaduct along the route known as 1D or blue. Of the three options considered, this route is the longest but it destroys the least number of homes in the west side neighborhood.

Twelve members of the public spoke during the discussion of the amendment to change the show of support from the yellow route to the blue route. Nine were in favor of the blue route, one was in favor of the yellow route and two said they did not have a preference other than getting a new viaduct built without any further delays.

"We can't have access under the viaduct," argued Gina Chavez, co-founder of the West Side League of Neighbors. "So we would have a mountain through our neighborhood and (the yellow route) would destroy the cultural continuity."

Chavez presented the council with a packet containing a petition of over 500 signatures as well as letters from the Albany County Commissioners and the Lincoln Community Center in support of the blue route. She mentioned that while they were putting together the information she found that many homeowners in the west side neighborhood were unaware that their homes might be destroyed.

"I believe many of the yellow route concerns can be alleviated through good design," suggested Mayor Scott Mullner, who kept his support behind the yellow route saying that since it would be the shortest route, it would serve the entire city the best. He noted that the emergency response time would be longer on the blue route and use approximately 100,000 gallons of gas annually.

Councilors Joe Vitale and Erik Molvar argued for the blue route, noting how the yellow route would divide a neighborhood while the blue route would separate residential from industrial areas. Molvar was one of two council members who toured the area with the West Side League of Neighbors and said that ultimately he had to go by what the people said, which was that any route other than blue would destroy the neighborhood.

Mainly at issue with the yellow route seemed to be the historical impact. Wyoming Department of Transportation (WYDOT) archaeologist Julie Francis, who studied the area, said that while only one home considered historic was in the direct path of the yellow route, seven historic homes would suffer adverse indirect effects because the setting would be changed. This could cause mitigation which has the potential to prolong the design process.

"We have delayed this for far too long," said councilor Joe Shumway. "I'm looking forward to making sure we come to a final resolution, then handing the baton off to WYDOT so the project can move forward."

Ultimately the amendment and then the main motion passed in support of the Harney Street viaduct to be built along the blue route. Councilors Vitale, Molvar, Shumway, Klaus Hanson and Karl McCraken voted in favor of the amendment and motion while Mullner, Lee Kempert, Roger McKinley and Dave Paulekas voted against both.

The final decision on the alignment of the Harney Street viaduct lies with WYDOT and the Federal Highways Administration, who have been working in cooperation with the City of Laramie on the project.

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