Resident urges traffic-safety alternative to proposed roundabout near Compass Academy

A resident of Ponderosa Estates urged the council to reconsider a proposed roundabout on the 56th Street corridor near Compass Academy, saying the roundabout would create safety and noise problems for families and students and asking the city to install a traffic signal instead.

Ali Bowling (listed in the transcript as Ali Bowling), who said she lives on Ponderosa Boulevard, described daily student traffic from Compass Academy — which she said has about 1,800 students this year — and recounted learning a ninth‑grade student was recently struck by another student driving on campus. Bowling said staggered dismissal times across K–12 grades cause parents to queue at the school and that widening 56th Street could push queuing traffic into the Ponderosa neighborhood; she warned that a roundabout’s unpredictable traffic flow could worsen pedestrian safety. "It's a scary place out there," she said, and asked the council to consider a timed traffic signal instead of a roundabout.

Bowling told the council she had discussed the matter earlier with Council member Thompson and that neighborhood residents would prefer a traffic light to preserve safe pedestrian crossings and quieter habitation. The council acknowledged the concern during public comment and thanked her for bringing it forward; no formal motion or staff direction was recorded on the floor at that time.

The item referenced a previous staff presentation proposing a roundabout; Bowling said she learned of that proposal in June during a staff presentation. The council did not take immediate action at the meeting but may refer the issue to transportation staff for follow-up as part of any future geometric design or right-of-way decisions for 56th Street.