Residents at last week’s Northwood Civic Association discussed crime prevention tips and a project to reconstruct the traffic circle at Castor and Wyoming avenues.
NCA President Joe Krause said his neighbor on the 4700 block of Ramona Avenue was recently burglarized. The family was leaving for church when a man stopped them to ask for directions. They told him where they were going, and he broke into their home and was inside for more than an hour, Krause said.
“He knew he had a lot of time because they were going to church,” he said.
Krause warned residents not to share information with people they meet on the street. Others at the meeting said neighbors should be vigilant as the weather gets warmer. Residents were urged to lock their doors and windows when they leave the house and leave their lights on if they are away from home at night.
NCA member Terry Heiser updated residents on a project to rebuild the Castor and Wyoming traffic circle, which connects Northwood and Juniata. A public meeting was held to discuss the design last month.
The state Department of Transportation is planning to convert the circle into a full-fledged roundabout. One of the goals of the project is to slow down traffic and improve safety at the intersection.
Heiser, who handles traffic issues for the civic association, said PennDOT will narrow the circular part of the street so that the roundabout will have only one lane. In addition, raised crosswalks will be constructed, he said.
“It will be a significant improvement, that’s for sure,” Heiser said. “There’s a lot of good things about it.”
The project is still early on, and Heiser said it is estimated construction will take a year and a half. It should be finished by April 2020, according to PennDOT documents.
The Northwood Civic Association meets on the third Tuesday of every month at 7 p.m. at Simpson Recreation Center, 1010 Arrott St. ••
