City officials are once again moving forward on a proposed $545,000 roundabout at 19th and Louisiana streets.

Commissioners at their meeting Tuesday evening unanimously agreed to proceed with an engineering study that will produce four design alternatives for the busy intersection, which is adjacent to Lawrence High School.

The project had been put on hold by city commissioners earlier this month when they began to question the price of the project and whether there were other intersections in town that were in greater need of improvements.

City staff members presented information from prior studies that showed traffic volumes and crash rates — 32 crashes in the last three years — at the intersection ranked it as an even greater priority than 15th Street and Wakarusa Drive, which city commissioners agreed to improve in October because of its dangers.

The data was enough to convince commissioners.

“I’m not a roundabout fan. I can take them or leave them,” said City Commissioner Boog Highberger. “But everything indicates to me that the best solution at this intersection is a roundabout.”

Mayor Mike Rundle originally had asked the issue to be restudied. He said he could move ahead on the project if the engineering study paid particular attention to designing a roundabout with pedestrian safety in mind.

Commissioners also heard from some neighbors who urged the city to keep the project moving forward.

“Upon reading the staff report, it seems to confirm our realization that this is an extremely dangerous intersection,” C.J. Brune, a resident of the nearby University Place Neighborhood. “We have put in signals and we have put in turn lanes and it just keeps getting worse.”

The $37,180 engineering study by BG Consultants is expected to be completed this summer. Construction would not begin until summer 2006.

Building moratorium extended 90 days

City commissioners at their meeting Tuesday evening unanimously agreed to extend a temporary building permit moratorium for 90 days in portions of Hillcrest, Old West Lawrence and Pinckney neighborhoods.

The moratorium is designed to give city officials time to complete an area plan that will guide future growth and development in the neighborhoods.

The moratorium affects properties that are south of Fifth Street, north of Seventh Street, east of California Street and west of Alabama Street.

Property owners would be allowed to receive a building permit for repairs on their homes or businesses, as long as the repairs didn’t increase the size of the building.

Plans move forward on 23rd Street access

Commissioners were updated on a plan to eliminate, consolidate or redesign access points on 23rd Street. A representative from HNTB Corp. told commissioners that the company would begin sending letters to property owners along 23rd Street between Louisiana and Iowa streets.

The letters will be a precursor to meetings that the engineering company will want to have with property owners along the corridor to discuss possible changes to access points.

The city has roughly $940,000 in state and city funds to spend on the improvements. Any changes to the access points, or driveways, would have to be approved by the City Commission.

Construction would not begin until spring 2007.