Parkmead Neighborhood Activists Request For Stop Sign Is Denied

Some Parkmead parents aren't getting the stop sign they wanted on Newell Avenue.

And they may lose a crosswalk, too.

Contra Costa County traffic engineers informed the parents this week that the intersection of Newell and Idlewood Drive does not meet the criteria needed to install a stop sign.

In addition, Senior Civil Engineer Monish Sen told the parents the county may remove the crosswalk that is currently on the blind corner at that intersection.

"Mid-block painted crosswalks can impart a false sense of security and we typically would not put them in unless several criteria are met," Sen wrote in an email to the group. "One of those criteria is that a large volume of pedestrians currently cross at a location, which based on our observations, this crosswalk does not meet."

During the past month, county crews have put in red poles and a stop sign at the nearby intersection of Newell Avenue and Lilac Drive in response to safety concerns.

In early December, a group of Parkmead Elementary School parents went public with their concerns that cars are driven too quickly down Newell Avenue.

They noted the narrow, winding street is sometimes used as a thoroughfare by commuters. In addition, the road becomes crowded with cars when the school day begins and ends at both Parkmead and the nearby Dorris Eaton School.

Le-Lan Jorgensen, one of the leaders of the parents group, said she was disappointed by the county decision but not surprised.

She said her plan is to continue to cross Newell Avenue up the road from Idlewood with her children, holding a red stop sign in her hand.

She added she also plans to park her van along Newell Avenue in an effort to slow down traffic.