A group of East Lansing community residents say they're angry about the amount of traffic on Abbott Road and don't want to see any more development until the problem is solved.

At Tuesday's city council meeting, resident Joe Tuchinsky presented to the council a petition that was passed around the community throughout the past few weeks.

The petition, which had 187 signatures, was part of the residents' effort not to allow construction of new developments until city officials address the traffic problem on Abbott Road.

Tuchinsky, a resident of the city for 31 years, and a small group of other community members have been working with city officials, the East Lansing Planning Commission and Transportation Commission on the issue, and say they plan to continue until it can get resolved.

"There's been a welcoming attitude at each place we've gone," he said. "We're not going to let officials forget there are a whole lot of people affected by this."

One of those residents affected is Julius Hoffman, who has lived in the city for more than 50 years. Hoffman was a part of the petition effort and addressed the council on Tuesday about the way he has seen traffic change over the years.

"There's a horrendous traffic jam that occurs three times a day," he said. "It's gone from practically a few cars to too damn many cars."

Councilmember Bill Sharp said there are recurring traffic jams several times a day.

City Manager Ted Staton said with such high demand for off-campus housing from MSU students, stopping development won't solve the traffic problem.

"The problem is real and I think we all acknowledge that," Staton said. "But the solution will be complex."

Tuchinsky said his only complaint from the meeting was that council members didn't seem to address the issue of stopping further development, and they only acknowledged that there is a traffic problem.

That future development could include a request that was made from Gillespie Development & Management to construct The Beaumont, a 40-acre development that would be built on Coleman Road near Crossing Place Apartments, 3636 Coleman Road in Bath Township.

Gillespie's development would add 448 more housing units to the already growing area, along with retail space and other amenities. City officials expect it would add almost 1,000 more cars per day traveling on Abbott Road. That request is still pending with the planning commission.

Gillepsie's request was one of the developments named on Tuchinsky's petition and is one the group hopes to stop.

Mayor Mark Meadows said the council would refer the petition to the planning commission for further discussion. Meadows also mentioned that Bath Township could be holding a traffic study to assess the situation, and council members said they would look forward to seeing that study before making decisions.

Tuchinsky said he remains optimistic with his petition, but it remains in the hands of city officials and hopes they can all work something out.

"They all need to sit down at a table and talk about what they can do together," he said. "They need to cooperate."

Sarah McEvilly can be reached at mcevilly@msu.edu.