COTTONWOOD HEIGHTS, Utah — One person hit is one too many, which is why some Cottonwood Heights residents are advocating for more safety features at the crosswalk near Bella Vista Elementary.
"We've had one child killed in this intersection, I've been hit in this intersection, we had a number of younger children damaged," said David Finch who has lived on Fort Union Boulevard near Bella Vista Elementary for decades.
Finch says he's been asking for someone to make changes where a 12-year-old was critically injured Monday night for over 30 years, even when the area wasn't yet Cottonwood Heights.
"Of course, everybody wants to do something, but nothing ever seems to be able to get done, and it's a dirty rotten shame that we have another young man who's going to be in bad shape for a while," Finch said.
Finch isn't the only person that's been concerned about crosswalks around the city.
Wade Hansen's 11-year-old son, Henry, was doing everything right when he was hit by a car on Creek Road in June. Henry underwent surgery at Primary Children's Hospital and Hansen says his son is still recovering.
"There was another car that came up behind some of the cars that stopped and didn't see the cars had stopped in time, so she swerved around to miss those cars and ended up hitting Henry in the crosswalk," Hansen said.
There are flashing lights at the crosswalk where Henry was hit, but Hansen says it wasn't until after his son was struck that Cottonwood Heights installed the lights. The same lights Finch says he's been wanting to be installed at the Fort Union Blvd crosswalk for years.
"It's too bad it takes such a long time for a piece of very important safety equipment to be installed on such a busy street," Finch said.
FOX 13 News reached out to Cottonwood Heights to ask about crosswalk improvements at the intersection near Bella Vista Elementary where the 12-year-old boy was hit.
"The city of Cottonwood Heights has been taking significant steps to address the safety of this intersection since 2021, when city staff prepared a grant application for federal funding to make improvements to the intersection and construct a HAWK light signal at this crosswalk," the city responded in a statement.
Cottonwood Heights officials said the city goes on to say the project is being pursued in the 2023-24 budget year and the city is doing all they can to expedite the process.
"If we've got the budget, got the ability to put these things in place, it's always better to put them in pace before somebody gets injured," Hansen said.
