by Geoff Fox
Two residents came before town officials to let them know about an issue they have with kids in town and them riding bikes.
About a week before the October town meeting, Lisa Teeter said she almost hit a child as she was coming to the four-way stop at Pennsylvania Avenue and High Street, headed north. She was the second of three cars to get to the intersection.
Teeter said the first car went and then she started to go when a bike she didn’t see from anywhere flew right in front of her.
She described the child as small, maybe elementary aged, no helmet.
“It was close,” she said, noting that her 2-year-old granddaughter was in the backseat at the time.
It’s happening so much with the kids running around the town without any accountability. She even noted the kids around her home are out all the time.
Police told Teeter at the time that a little girl had been hit on Pennsylvania Avenue and didn’t even call for two hours.
Mayor Roland Lanehart said it’s not just the kids doing it as he’s seen adults on electric bicycles doing the same thing.
Teeter said she’d like to see the parents held accountable and the police work with the school to do some kind of safety program so what happened to her doesn’t become an issue.
Sgt. Shawn Faith said he’s made Principal Andrew Kaetzel at Hancock Middle-Senior High School aware of the laws and town ordinances as they’ve had issues at the high school as well.
Teeter said her son is a police officer and has told her there’s nothing that can be done to children under a certain age.
Faith said the police department is aware and that The Hancock News had run a story about the laws and ordinance.
“Per your call, we’ve stepped it up,” he said, adding the police are handing out bike helmets.
Faith added some people might not be aware of the bike laws.
Teeter said giving the kids the information would allow them to start being accountable for their own safety.
Robert Teeter said the cameras the town is looking to upgrade to would have helped in this situation as he had a similar incident where a kid was on a scooter and cut in front of Teeter and he almost clipped him into other cars.
“It’s gone on a lot,” he said.
Over the last few years, Teeter said he’s been sick but has been feeling better and starting to do things, but doesn’t want to go outside because there’s so many issues.
“I would like to go outside more, the security is the big thing,” he said. “My wife not being safe and having issues down there caused me issues.”
In the 23 years he’s lived in Hancock, Teeter said he remembers sitting on the porch and you could wave to people and talk to them. But that doesn’t happen now, he said.
But security with the cameras would help.
Councilwoman Teri Smith said it doesn’t correct the whole problem, but she has the same issues with the bikes and scooters on her street.
“It’s not as bad as it was,” she said.
Right around dusk, she said the kids are on the low bikes and running through the alleys and not stopping. When a car hits the top of one of the hills, they go shooting through the area. Smith admitted she’s almost hit them as well.
She added there’s been skateboarders trying to grab the bumper of cars and if you say anything to them, they give you the middle finger.
