Traffic was a hot topic at the July 11 Sunset Hills Board of Aldermen meeting.

First, the board considered two text amendments relating to traffic study requirements.

The current city code requires a level of service “D” or better for a development to be approved. Levels of service define how well traffic flows, and are determined by the number of seconds a vehicle waits at a particular intersection. These levels go from “A” to “F,” though “F” is considered unstable.

The proposed amendment discussed by the board allows sites with intersections that have less than a “D” rating to redevelop as long as said redevelopment does not increase traffic by over 20%.

“This should have been done when we originally wrote it,” Bryson E. Baker, city engineer and director of Public Works, said. “We are the only municipality that I’m aware of anywhere that has a black and white level of service ‘D’ requirement. Most other cities use requirements such as this as a tool to make a decision, whereas we actually use it as a pass-fail. I believe by doing this … it’s more fair to anybody that needs a traffic study.”

The second proposed amendment clarifies that the city is to be the client for traffic study contracts. This essentially means that when a traffic study is required, the city will cover the cost and will later be reimbursed by the developer. Though this is already stated in the code, clarifying language was recommended to make it more clear.

“We’re … putting this back to how it was previous to the zoning code rewrite,” Baker said. “When we rewrote the zoning code … it was not quite as clear as it was previously. Based on some feedback from some applicants, we thought it was best to tighten it up.”

Talk of traffic did not end there. During public comment at the meeting, Sunset Hills resident Kari Willett came in front of the board to discuss the increased speeding on Denny Road, urging the city to “do something” to keep residents safe.

In 2020, the Public Works Committee agreed to install two solar-powered speed limit signs on Denny Road between Gravois Road and Lindbergh Boulevard, though according to Willett, it “encourages (drivers) to see how fast the signs can go.”

“While outdoors, we can easily see speed signs indicated by the speeders reaching 60 plus miles an hour in 30 mile per hour zones. While that’s not the norm, it is occurring,” Willett said. “The average rate of speed on Denny during p.m. rush hour is 38 to 41 miles an hour – 11 miles over the speed limit. My family had to place a fence around our property so that our daughter could play in her own backyard.”

Willett then presented a list of signatures from residents of Denny for a stop sign to the board, who discussed the issue in depth at the end of the meeting during general discussion.

Though a stop sign could curtail speed, Baker reminded the board that stop signs are right-of-way devices – they can be used to stop speeding if that seems to be the only option, but it is not the main purpose of the sign.

“Putting a stop sign in the middle of Denny is gonna make a lot of people mad, a lot of people that don’t speed mad,” Baker said. “One of the reasons you don’t put stop signs for speed is … people speed up to get to the stop sign, they stop or roll through it and they speed to get away.”

Other options to slow drivers down were discussed, from silly suggestions of mannequins and fake cars, to more serious solutions like an increased police presence and the addition of removable speed humps. Ward 3 Alderman Randy Epperson mentioned lowering the speed limit from 30 to 25 mph as it would be the easiest and cheapest option for the city.

Nothing was specifically decided on, though the conversation will likely continue at future meetings.