LBA Woods: source claims Olympia will revive talks about a road through it

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Last Monday, a source claimed that the Olympia Planning Commission revived its plan for the Log Cabin road extension, a proposed street connection that would cut across the LBA Woods.

According to Stop The Road, a campaign against the proposed road extension, the Olympia Planning Commission is reconsidering its plans regarding a possible future road. On May 31 the group claimed in a broadcast email that the planning commission is completing its analysis for the project and plans to conduct a public hearing in July and brought up concerns that the issue is not settled.

Stop The Road’s email states that the commission's findings would provide a basis for recommendation on whether to adopt or modify the city’s Comprehensive Plan to push back any extension to Log Cabin Road for several years.

The reports are a stark contrast to the statements made by the Olympia City Council since officials assured that the road extension would not take place for at least the next ten years. The decision came after several residents expressed their concern about the proposed project.

To clarify the matter, Joyce Phillips, City of Olympia’s Principal Planner, confirmed that an amendment for the Log Cabin Road extension is included in the annual Comprehensive Plan Amendments. The commission will discuss these amendments during a scheduled briefing on June 21 and conduct a public hearing by July 19. Once approved, the source said that the city council could vote to formally modify the Comprehensive Plan by November.

However, Phillips explained that the amendment for the Log Cabin road extension is only limited to a recommendation for further study and discussion. She reiterated that as a result of the growing concerns regarding the plan, the city decided to remove any reference to it in the proposal.

Currently, the commission placed the project under the Transportation 2030 maps and identified it as a “Future Major Collector” type of street. This type of street provides access to residential properties such as Morse Merryman, Wiggins, and Boulevard Roads.

The road would cut across the LBA Park and connect Log Cabin Road, itself an extension of North Street, to Wiggins Road. The new connection would make it easier for locals to travel from southeast Olympia to Lacey without driving a mile south to do so via Yelm Highway.

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  • DesertMedic

    This is a horrible idea. We need to preserve LBA woods as they are. We are losing places like this too often.

    Tuesday, June 8, 2021 Report this

  • AJoytoknow

    Another trogen horse? I mean we have a sea of giant parking lots and empty big box stores, warehouses, and "luxury apartments " sitting empty or underutilized, but for some reason we just can't stop cutting down trees to "make room for growth ". What a bunch of b.s.! Shameless and shameful!

    Thursday, June 17, 2021 Report this