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County could 'pull the plug' on Expo amphitheater Central Point officials raise noise, pollution, traffic issues By BUFFY POLLOCK CENTRAL POINT - Planners of a proposed 5,900-seat amphitheater have assured City Council members the project would not proceed unless all their concerns could be resolved. "What they're doing is looking seriously at the feasibility of this (site) and if, at the end of the day, our engineers say that this is just not going to work, then the county will simply pull the plug on it," said Craig Stone, a land-use attorney working for the county. A Wednesday meeting brought the City Council together with fair-board members, project engineers and county Commissioner Sue Kupillas, who said she'd been looking forward to talking with the city about the controversial project. "As we get more and more people in this county, we'll have more issues we'll be working together on. Our intent is to address all the concerns you have because you live here and represent the people in Central Point," Kupillas said. The county announced plans to build the $3 million amphitheater at the Jackson County Exposition Center last year and hoped to break ground this summer. The project was delayed when city officials expressed concern that the amphitheater would cause traffic and noise problems in Central Point. The two sides met last week to discuss a recent traffic study done by Parametrix, a Portland firm. The study suggested several traffic control options: * Using the Rogue Valley Family Fun Center parking lot for 12 additional stacking lanes. * Timing events so they don't interfere with peak traffic times (such as 7:30 or 8 p.m.). * Turning Peninger Road into one-way traffic during events. * Turning off signals during events and using law enforcement officers to direct traffic at three major intersections: Freeman Road, Peninger Road and the freeway off-ramp. Several council members also expressed concerns about pollution, pedestrian safety and access for emergency vehicles during events. "We already have a severe problem at the Pilot (station) intersection, and here we're saying we want to compound that," said Mayor Bill Walton. "Five minutes can make the difference between saving a home or losing it," said council member and former firefighter Dick Halley. The big issue for many council members remained the noise generated by outdoor events. Stone explained 12-foot berms would reduce sound by 22 decibels, and noise levels would be monitored by special equipment so they would not exceed 110 decibels. "I've been hearing-impaired my entire life and I can hear it very well from my house," said Walton, referring to concerts staged at the expo during the county fair. "If you sit in your back yard, you'll probably be able to pick it out if you try," Stone said. "Is it going to be loud and obnoxious? No. Basically about the same as an ambulance on the freeway," or about 82 decibels, he added. But council member Dennis Richardson said that no matter where the amphitheater was built, someone would suffer. "Right now, a few nights a year, it's very loud. I can't begin to anticipate what that would be like every Friday night. It's an exchange of quality of life for opportunity," he said. "Ten percent of the people will be suffering so that 90 percent will benefit. Well that's just fine, unless you're the 10 percent suffering." While pleased to have some of the city's questions addressed, council member Dr. David Gilmour said afterward he was "still very skeptical" that the project could be done without noise and traffic problems. "There seemed to be a promise if they can't get the problems worked out, they'll abandon the project," he said. "I hope they keep their promises. If push comes to shove and they try to push it down our throats, we just won't accept it. I've got my petition waiting." Gilmour announced plans two weeks ago to circulate a petition to move the project to White City if the city's concerns could not be resolved. "They might be looking at the issues we brought up, but I don't think they've resolved them yet," said Gilmour. "I still wish they would look at other sites." Buffy Pollock is a free-lance writer living in Medford. E-mail her at [email protected]. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.