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Transit rules Haney’s 1st district meetup in Surprise

New councilman greets residents across District 1

Posted 2/2/23

Surprise Council member Nick Haney’s first meeting with constituents Jan. 26 at Asante Library largely focused on traffic backups at the intersection of Loop 303 and Grand Avenue.

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City Government

Transit rules Haney’s 1st district meetup in Surprise

New councilman greets residents across District 1

Posted

Surprise Council member Nick Haney’s first meeting with constituents Jan. 26 at Asante Library largely focused on traffic backups at the intersection of Loop 303 and Grand Avenue.

“I think a lot of us that live kind of in the north part of the district have kind of felt like we’re forgotten sometimes, and my goal is to make sure you guys feel like you have a voice down at City Hall just as much as the folks down a little bit south of us,” the newly elected District 1 councilman told a room full of District 1 residents.

Haney is a longtime resident of Surprise and a firefighter/EMT in Glendale. He said he was glad to see the residents of District 1 come to the meeting and voice their concerns.

“This is the best part, and this is why I love local government,” Haney said in an interview. “It’s going into the library in this community and getting folks to come out here and just feel comfortable to voice their concerns and understand that, you know, government has its limitations, but it also has a lot of opportunity for us to do good, and we’re working on it,”

A host of city officials were in attendance to support the new councilman, including City Manager Bob Wingenroth, Community Development Director Lloyd Abrams, Transportation Director Eric Fitzer, Public Works Director Kristin Tytler, Fire Chief Brenden Espie, Assistant Fire Chiefs Chip Gleason and Kevin Spirlong and Assistant Police Chief Chuck Morin.

District 1 of Surprise encompasses the northern and far northwestern portions of the city. There is a great deal of undeveloped land in District 1, but the area is growing fast west of Loop 303, although not without problems.

A major issue is traffic, specifically for residents who live west of the 303 towards Wickenburg. Haney said the commute from City Hall to the Asante Library, the location of the meeting, took him more than 30 minutes.

Some residents at the meeting cited traffic lights as the problem, and others called for more exits off Loop 303.

“We gotta have more exits out,” said Suzie Hunter, a District 1 resident who attended the meeting. “Those more exits out are then going to alleviate some of that traffic that’s coming off of Grand right now.”

Haney provided the residents with information about a possible short-term solution. Two possible pieces of legislation, HB2107 and SB1102, are bills that, if passed by the Arizona House of Representatives and Senate, would allocate $3 million towards fixes to help alleviate traffic.

Haney described the Arizona Department of Transportation’s proposed plans to convert the northbound Loop 303 exit ramp to U.S. 60 from one lane to two lanes, widen the ramp intersection at U.S. 60 to provide three dedicated left turn lanes and a single dedicated right turn lane, add a third left turn lane from southbound 163rd Avenue to eastbound U.S. 60, add a second right turn lane from westbound U.S. 60 to northbound 163rd Avenue, and extend a third U.S. 60 eastbound lane from southbound 163rd Avenue.

District 1 resident Dallas Smith said he appreciated the opportunity to voice his concerns.

“I don’t know if they’re doing enough,” Smith said. “I’m not in a position to answer if they’re doing enough. Having the meeting tonight, it sounds like ... they’re trying to get input from the residents and the people that are experiencing the problem.”

As the meeting ended, Haney, Wingenroth, Abrams, Fitzer, Tytler, Espie, Gleason, Spirlong and Morin stayed to talk with residents, something District 1 resident Linda Kleiner appreciated.

“I just want to say, after tonight’s meeting, we are in excellent hands, and I’m very proud of the city that we live in and the people that work here.”

James Lotts is a student at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.