Plan for traffic circles goes flat  Council doesn't have enough
votes to approve a years-in-the-making project to revitalize
Hillsborough St  Staff WriterJanuary 13, 2007     • It's a
circle built at an intersection designed to move vehicles
through at a slow but constant pace, also known as a traffic
circle or rotary.  — The city's seven-year flirtation with
English-style roundabouts, meant to bring charm and order to
Hillsborough Street, appears finished.  Mayor Charles Meeker
spent the week heavily lobbying the two council members still
wavering on the $3.7 million project.  But Philip Isley and
Joyce Kekas won't budge without a major overhaul, leaving the
project without the five council votes it needs for approval.
Isley and Kekas fear roundabouts will choke Hillsborough Street
traffic to a two-lane crawl and rob businesses of much-needed
daytime parking.  Both agree the street is suffering through a
decades-long slump but consider traffic circles the wrong
remedy. Isley likened the plan to "giving a sho