Tony Umile knew the route quite well from his house close to the intersection of Third Avenue and Pratt Street to the nearby Javastop. The 84-year-old Umile walked it nearly everyday, neighbor Cally Chenault said Thursday.
“He used to walk at a pretty good clip to the Javastop and then recently he slowed down a bit, but you can always count on seeing him,” Chenault said, still stunned over Umile’s death Tuesday. Umile was struck by a car at the intersection about 9 a.m. and later died from his injuries.
“This is just a tragedy,” Chenault said.
Umile, a well-known local photographer, was walking north and crossing Third Avenue when he was hit by a 2014 Subaru Impreza, driven by a 31-year-old man going east on Third Avenue.
Speed, drugs and alcohol are not suspected to be factors in the collision, according to Longmont Police. The collision is still being investigated.
Chenault said Umile’s death exposed concerns from neighbors about traffic safety in the area around Third Avenue and Pratt as well as near Central Elementary School. Third Avenue and Pratt is not clearly marked with a cross walk while stop signs are needed near the school.
“This city should be concerned about creating more pedestrian friendly neighborhoods, especially here in Old Town, by making it safer for pedestrians,” Chenault said.
“Some parents won’t let their children walk by themselves to Central because they are afraid of the traffic,” she added. “That has to stop.”
To consider crosswalk enhancements at an existing intersection, the city would need to undertake a pedestrian movement study to determine if there is enough movement at the intersection to meet pedestrian crossing treatment guidelines, Jim Angstadt, Longmont’s director of engineering services, said via email.
“A check of our records indicated that staff last undertook a pedestrian movement study at this intersection in 2017 and the pedestrian movements did not meet the criteria to warrant a crossing treatment,” Angstadt said.
“Due to the recent tragedy,” he added, “staff has received a number of emails regarding this intersection and have initiated a data collection effort to determine if movements at the intersection will now meet the necessary criteria.”
In addition, staff is currently planning safety and traffic calming improvements along the 3rd Avenue corridor which are planned for next year and this intersection will be evaluated for safety improvements as part of that effort,” Angstadt said.
