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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/06/2016 Work Session City of Springfield Work Session Meeting MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 6,2016 The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Jesse Maine Meeting Room, 225 Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon,on Tuesday September 6,2016 at 6:00 p.m.,with Mayor Lundberg presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Mayor Lundberg and Councilors Wylie,Moore,Woodrow and Pishioneri. Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi,City Attorney Mary Bridget Smith,City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff. Councilors VanGordon and Ralston were absent(excused). 1. Virginia-Daisy Bikeway Project Draft Final Design Concept. Emma Newman, Senior Planner, presented the staff report on this item. The Virginia-Daisy Bikeway project has been developed using significant community involvement in the planning process and design concept development. The draft final design concept is the result of design refinement based on neighborhood input,feedback from the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, and guidance from the Planning Commission and City Council. Staff will review the draft final design concept with City Council in preparation for approval of a final concept during the October 3 Regular Session. Once the final design concept is approved,staff will proceedwith detailed engineering design and construction. The goal is to construct the project in Summer 2017. The Virginia-Daisy Bikeway Project is funded through an$800,000 grant from the ODOT Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee Transportation Enhancement Program,which provides funding to improve biking and walking transportation facilities. $50,000 of the grant is going toward planning and project development and the balance will fund engineering and construction. Staff has worked to efficiently use funds to accomplish many City goals with one project by integrating bikeway treatments,key safety improvements for all road users,street maintenance,storm water treatment,and ADA upgrades.The Bikeway will integrate and complete Springfield Transportation System Plan projects PB-36:Virginia-Daisy Bikeway and R-38: South 42"d Street/Daisy Street Intersection Improvements for much less cost than the cost of planning and building the two projects separately. The project also helps fulfill the requirements of the municipal separate storm sewer system(MS4) permit and supports the City of Springfield's 7 Key Stormwater Goals. Ms.Newman reviewed the project goals: 1. The project aligns with the City of Springfield's commitment to providing safe transportation options. The project is an identified need in the Springfield Transportation System and aligns with regional bike network connectivity goals. 2. 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RW emememy vCh"IM, and odle� �andard that tni%Ld� alon'l thc corlidor to Mnuu% City of Springfield Council.Work Session Minutes September 6,2016 Page 3 • Located conceptual trees within the parking lanes so that they would align with parked cars and would not inhibit the travel way at all. • The largest proposed stormwater treatment facility is located near south 42'd Place and resides on the very outside of the street,beyond the bike lane, in a configuration that smoothly maintains the automobile travel way. • As the project moves into detailed design and engineering,additional engineering assessment will be conducted to decide whether curb or merely striping would be most appropriate for lane delineation in a couple of locations. • Smoothed out transitions in a few locations as the bike lanes shift from curb-tight to floating beyond the on-street parking lane. Ms.Newman said the goal is to provide traffic calming. She displayed a raised crosswalk which is also used to calm traffic and noted where pedestrians will be crossing. She displayed other traffic calming options and discussed each. 5. Directed staff to collect additional evening weekend parking utilization counts to ensure treatments complement the current on-street parking patterns. Action Taken: • Evening weekend parking utilization counts were conducted at four different times and incorporated into the parking utilization assessment(pages 30 and 31 of Attachment 1: Draft Final Report). • In the two locations with most significant proposed changes,the current peak parking utilization would equate to 10%(S 42nd to Weyerhaeuser Haul Rd on Daisy St)and 33%(Ridge Dr to Bob Straub Parkway)post implementation.The draft final design concept could be implemented as proposed and still accommodate three times the number of cars parked on-street as have been observed at the most highly utilized times in the locations where the most changes to oil-street parking configuration are proposed. Ms.Newman said a second open house was held since the last work session. Community involvement has influenced the design concept development throughout the project.They have held open houses, sent out postcards, called individuals at key locations,emailed, in person meetings with residents at 42 d Street and Daisy,met with the Planning Commission, and kept the BPAC updated on the project. She read two quotes from citizens who were happy to have this project move forward. She discussed the cost estimates and funding sources for this project and how funds would be used for each piece of this project. The overlay and ADA requirements are already scheduled to be done. A Council regular meeting is scheduled for October 3.Following that meeting,additional engineering and design work will be done.The goal is to put the projects out to bid nest summer. Staff will update the Council and the community throughout this process. Councilor Woodrow said she likes the idea of consistency for the length of this roadway. It is best for safety. One of her concerns is that they have the least amount of distractions for all vehicles and pedestrians. She referred to the parking bays and asked if the bicyclists travel between the white line and the trees. Ms.Newsman said in some places along the corridor there are shared lanes with vehicles. If it is a separate bike lane,the bike lane is outside the parking lane and the tree space. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 6,2016 Page 4 Councilor Woodrow said she is more comfortable with the plan as it is now outlined. Councilor Pishioneri asked about the buffered bike lanes going east.They did not have them further west yet the street seems to be the same width. He has seen buffer bike lanes take out parking in Eugene and is not in support. He did notice that some areas have no need for parking so they may be more appropriate west of that area. Ms.Newman said it is based on parking utilization from the study. She explained further the reason for the places there is no parking,and where there are buffered bike lanes. She spoke with a resident of the mobile home park who was in support of no parking in that area. Councilor Pishioneri asked what the purpose was of having the buffered bike lanes in that stretch rather than just wide bike lanes. Mr. Liebler said they could use a wider bike lane. If they make one without a buffer, it looks like it's for parking and people park where they aren't supposed to. Councilor Pishioneri said no parking signs could also be used and would be less expensive. Mr. Liebler agreed that is another option. Councilor Pishioneri said he wants to make sure they are using funds where most needed. He likes the design so far. Councilor Moore asked if there are bike lanes going both cast andwest along the full stretch of road. Ms. Newman said wherever there are bike lanes,they are on both sides of street. The stretch between 5151 and 52"d is already narrow and people are not able to park. They are adding a sidewalk where there is no sidewalk in that location. Councilor Moore asked if they knew where the$477,000 would be corning from. City Engineer Jeff Paschall said the ADA issue is a common problem for all City projects, Part of the transition plan is to make sure the funds are available in transportation. They don't have funding identified for this project,but are looking at options such as street funding and SDC funds.They will look at upgrading the intersections first. The cost is high because there are numerous driveways along this corridor which is the big expense. Mayor Lundberg noted that a Federal lawsuit was the catalyst for the requirement of the new ADA compliance. Mr. Paschall said that is correct. The City is required to have a transition plan as part of the ADA. The City has to bring any facilities involving an overlay up to the current standard.Part of the transition plan is to identify funding and plan of how to address ADA.Council will see that transition plan later this year. Councilor Moore asked what kind of upgrade was needed for driveways. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 6,2016 Page 5 Mr. Paschall said some are not sloped correctly. He explained further. That area is normally the responsibility of the property owner, so that is something to discuss. Mayor Lundberg said these are new evolving ADA rules. She feels it should be the federal government's responsibility and should be pursued. Mr. Paschall said the first priority is intersections,then driveways. If they identify hazards,those will also be addressed. Councilor Moore asked about who was responsible for the cost of adding sidewalks. Mr.Newman said it is built into the project. She explained. Councilor Pisbioneri said west of 42"d they have shared lanes with the chevron markings. East of 42"d Street,the street seems to be the same width but has dedicated bike lanes. Ms.Newman said it is based on the average daily traffic count. Where there are higher volumes of vehicle traffic,they have included separate bike lanes for safety and comfort. Councilor Pishioneri said some homes have single garages and short driveways.He asked if staff talked to those residents about limiting the parking. Ms.Newman said that may require someone to park across the street. These were based on the parking study which included which side people were parking. Councilor Wylie said it is a good plan and good project. Mayor Lundberg said she had been an advocate for an alternate route for bicyclists,and this is a great alternative. She likes variations as it keeps people alert and helps calm street traffic as well. She wanted to point out that the ADA piece is being discussed at the state level as well. She is comfortable in making those changes, but it is very expensive to redesign and make changes. She would be fine bumping this out to November for the next discussion. Council was fine moving the public hearing to November after the election. Ms. Newman said cost for the overall bikeway included planning, public outreach and engineering. The actual cost for construction for the bikeways is about$500,000. Those funds have been granted. 2. Main Street Safety Corridor Creation Criteria. Brian Barnett,Traffic Engineer,presented the staff report on this item. Council requested information concerning the establishment of a safety corridor on Main Street. The Council Briefing Memorandum outlines Oregon Department of Transportation's(ODOT) requirements for creating and continuing a safety corridor and the commitment required of a local agency to maintain an active safety corridor status. Springfield must determine if the resources of each affected department are adequate to plan, implement and maintain the corridor activities for several years to make a safety corridor designation effective. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 6,2016 Page 6 The decision to establish a safety corridor is based upon ODOT's assessment of the corridor characteristics,the local agency's commitment to significant ongoing public involvement and outreach, public education,traffic law enforcement on drivers,bicyclists and pedestrians,engineering review and action, emergency medical service coordination,and ODOT's commitment to engineering review and action. Springfield Development and Public Works(DPW)staff is involved with several safety actions, many of which relate directly to Main Street,which have proven safety benefits. Examples include: 1. A vigorous citizen service request(CSR)program where comments, questions and concerns from the community are reviewed and analyzed by staff for consistency with nationally proven safety practices and appropriate laws. 2. An active safety education program reaching out to children and adults through print, social, audio,and video media,and direct interaction. 3. Active engagement of bicycle and pedestrian interests through the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, and the committee's outreach activities. 4. Thoughtful review of development applications and working with applicants,neighbors, and partner agencies to avoid and ameliorate safety issues at early stages of development. 5. Proactive maintenance of traffic controls(signs, markings,signals,pedestrian beacons, street lights)within budget constraints. 6. Updating traffic signal timing to reflect current needs for safety and mobility. 7. Pursuit and use of traffic safety grants to construct safer streets at low cost to the City of Springfield. ODOT may expect increased, documented effort from the Police Department as a condition of establishing a safety corridor. Mr. Barnett said designating Main Street as a safety corridor could help enhance the safety aspects currently underway. There is a commitment for the City of designating a safety corridor. if the Council chooses to move forward with this designation, staff will reach out to ODOT to go through the formal initiation program, pull together a stakeholder group and move forward to establish the corridor. Councilor Pishioneri said his understanding is that if a highway is designated as a safety corridor,and citations are written, all funds go to the State. Mr. Barnett said he would check into that. Councilor Pishioneri said he is not in support of the City being obligated to lose control over the type. and how much enforcement action we feel is needed. We are currently doing most of what is required and he sees no municipal advantage of having a safety corridor in city limits. Councilor Woodrow said the City has already spent a lot of time focusing on safety on Main Street from all directions, and have brought the community into the conversation. She wanted to know the advantage compared to doing what is already being done. Mr. Barnett said the chief advantage is the coordination of the different elements. He feels the City has done a reasonably good job of doing that thus far.The fines would also be increased as a safety corridor. We are doing everything else the corridor requires. Councilor Pishioneri said it takes away local authority of the magistrate to lower fines. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 6,2016 Page 7 Councilor Wylie said she would like to see the pros and cons for the City in getting this designation. Mayor Lundberg said she is a proponent. She read from the Oregon Safety Corridor Program Guidelines,which stated"One distinct advantage to the safety corridor concept is the ability to react to an identified crash problem in a short period of time. The implementation is relatively inexpensive and has been shown to have dramatic impacts on crash rates.In many cases,this concept is an intermediate step while progress is made toward more pennanent safety infrastructure improvements". It would be an issue if all of the citation funds went to the State, but it would give the City the ability to enforce our rules at a higher rate. The Council has to make a commitment to add enforcement for a concentrated time period to get the full effect.They would need to educate people that the fines will be higher. The ODOT information says that a corridor has dramatically changed people's behavior.The designation would stay long enough to change the behaviors.The Council and Budget Committee would have to decide to increase patrols and enforcement, and continue to make other changes to make Main Street safer. They need to know if the citation funds would go to the State or if the City would receive any. There may be a COI's grant to pay for additional enforcement, which could be done with or without a corridor. The goal is to reduce fatalities. She appreciates that ODOT lowered the speed limit. Councilor Pishioneri said Oregon has &corridors that were decommissionedbecause they did not reduce traffic crashes. The City is already planning other steps on Main Street and it may be worth waiting to see if those make any difference before going to a safety corridor. Mayor Lundberg said the work planned on Main Street now will take years. A Safety Corridor could be affective more quickly. Councilor Moore said she would also like to hear the pros and cons. It could be beneficial if it could be limited duration. Some of the things she would like to hear pros and cons about are: • Costs involved • Whether or not fines go only to State or if some goes to the City • Other affects to the City---good or bad Councilor Pishioneri said he would like to know if any other cities have a safety corridor, or why other cities have chosen not to be designated. Mr. Barnett said he could check to see if other cities had contemplated getting the designation. Councilor Wylie said she supports the idea of quickly applying standards that bring more safety. She would like to know what expectations there are for the City with this designation in terms of costs and resources. Mr. Barnett said there is an expectation of increased enforcement.The City has done some of that,but he's not sure if it is an adequate amount. We have an Education component that may or may not meet State expectations. ODOT has the authority to make engineering decisions.Emergency services effect rural areas more in terms of response times. Staff would also need to manage the stakeholder piece. Another work session on this topic will be scheduled. ADJOURNMENT City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September G,2016 Page 8 The meeting was adjourned at 6:55 p.m. Minutes Recorder—Amy Sowa "Lundberg Attest: &— Amy Sow City Recor er