HomeMy WebLinkAboutMain-McVay-Governance-Team-Meeting-Minutes-12-17-2015FinalMEETING NOTES
Main Street-McVay Transit Study Governance Team December 17, 2015 Page 1
MINUTES OF MEETING
Main Street-McVay Transit Study Governance Team
December 17, 2015
Pursuant to notice given to The Register-Guard for publication on December 14, 2015, and distributed
to persons on the mailing list of the District, the Main-McVay Transit Study Governance Team held a
meeting on Thursday, December 17, 2015, beginning at 3:00 p.m., in the Library Meeting Room at 225
N. 5th Avenue, Springfield, Oregon.
Attendees: Governance Team
Mayor Christine Lundberg, City of Springfield
Councilor Marilee Woodrow, City of Springfield
David Reesor for Frannie Brindle, Oregon Department of Transportation
Angelynn Pierce, Lane Transit District Board of Directors
Don Nordin, Lane Transit District Board of Directors
Gino Grimaldi, City of Springfield (Ex Officio)
A. J. Jackson, Lane Transit District (Ex Officio)
Project Management
Tom Boyatt, City of Springfield
Emma Newman, City of Springfield
Tom Schwetz, Lane Transit District
Roland Hoskins, Lane Transit District
Others
Gary Wildish, Lane Transit District Board of Directors
Sasha Luftig, Lane Transit District
Welcome and Agenda Review
Mayor Lundberg called the meeting to order and reviewed the agenda. Those present
introduced themselves. Mr. Reesor said he was filling in for Ms. Brindle, and Mr. Schwetz said
he was filling in for John Evans, who had left Lane Transit District (LTD) to accept another
position.
Project Overview and Phase 2 Scope
Mr. Schwetz said the draft Phase 2 scope of work had been reviewed by the Governance Team
at its last meeting. As a result of feedback, staff has revised it to expand public participation with
a more intensive and responsive iterative process that would keep business and property
owners along the corridor engaged throughout design and mitigation activities. He said the
expanded scope would require additional funds and a request to the Metropolitan Planning
Organization (MPO) for enough funding to complete Phase 2 had been reviewed and approved
by staff and would go before the Metropolitan Policy Committee (MPC) for approval at its
February 2016 meeting. Mr. Schwetz said the primary focus of Phase 2 was Main Street, but
that an option for McVay would be considered running as far as the Springfield Urban Growth
Boundary, with a stop at Nugget Way.
MEETING NOTES
Main Street-McVay Transit Study Governance Team December 17, 2015 Page 2
Mayor Lundberg thanked staff and LTD for developing an approach that addressed concerns
about adequate public engagement on a major project that would include components such as
safety improvements and land use concerns. She said the Main Street corridor had one of the
highest ridership potentials in the transit system and could become a showcase for LTD and for
the City as a premier entry and exit point. The Main-McVay Transit Study and transit
improvements provided the opportunity to create an attractive, safe, and functional corridor,
much as the Pioneer Parkway project had done. She was very pleased with the expansion of
public check-in points during Phase 2. She asked where check-in points with the City would
occur during the fairly aggressive project timeline.
Mr. Boyatt agreed that keeping the City Council and LTD Board informed was important, and
staff would schedule presentations to both groups at appropriate points during the project.
Ms. Jackson affirmed the importance of presenting the project as a joint, community-oriented
initiative. It was essential to find ways to present project information that would attract the
attention and interest of stakeholders and encourage their engagement in the process.
Mayor Lundberg expressed that using the term EmX would draw people's attention, and avoid
surprises later in the process, as corridor design concepts evolved. She said there was already
support for an EmX corridor, but LTD had avoided using that term during initial outreach
activities.
Mr. Grimaldi said outreach efforts should make it clear that change would happen. "No build"
was a mandatory part of the evaluation process, but realistically, transit service would change
and building would occur. Mr. Schwetz concurred that the federal environmental process
required "no build" as an option and agreed that it would fall off the list of concepts once that
process was completed and the LTD Board and City Council selected a locally preferred
solution.
Mr. Reesor said the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) was considering safety
improvements along Main Street and was pleased to be a part of the process. He said there
were several Main Street initiatives moving forward, and safety concerns were a part of all of
them--whether they were addressing transit, safety improvements, or land use.
Ms. Newman said that staff from all of the Main Street projects were coordinating closely to
assure an integrated approach.
Mayor Lundberg agreed that regardless of a project's primary focus, safety and efficiency were
critical factors; EmX had the potential to be a safety component along Main Street.
Mr. Schwetz announced that LTD had received notification that financial assistance would be
provided through the Mayor's Challenge to conduct a safety audit along the corridor.
Mr. Reesor asked if the stakeholder group involved in Phase 1 would be re-engaged for Phase
2. Ms. Newman replied that interested parties lists would be expanded in order to conduct
broader outreach in the community. She said that the stakeholder group did not have a specific
role in Phase 2, but would be reached out to, and provided opportunities, to engage during the
project iterations as the design process moved forward.
MEETING NOTES
Main Street-McVay Transit Study Governance Team December 17, 2015 Page 3
In response to questions from Mayor Lundberg and Ms. Woodrow, Mr. Schwetz estimated that
the first check in with the City Council and LTD Board during Phase 2 would occur following the
first iteration of design solutions that emerged during focused meetings with business and
property owners, were refined in a workshop using information from reviews and feedback.
Another check-in point would occur at the same point during the second iteration.
Ms. Pierce volunteered to accompany Mayor Lundberg and Ms. Woodrow on outreach visits to
stakeholders.
Mr. Boyatt said staff would begin working on an outreach/engagement plan that would place
priority on reaching out to impacted areas but engage everyone.
Mayor Lundberg asked for some flexibility in the process to assure that everyone was at the
table and address issues that might arise and require special attention, such as a business or
property owner not feeling that they had been informed of the project, or residents reacting to an
aspect of design like tree removal.
Ms. Woodrow commented that there had been initial resistance to some pedestrian crossings
on Main Street, but the City was now receiving positive feedback about them. That project had
created a positive image of the City and its plans for Main Street and could benefit this project.
Mayor Lundberg said the Pioneer Parkway project also was an excellent example of how transit
improvements along a corridor could benefit the community.
Follow Up and Next Steps
Mayor Lundberg confirmed that staff had sufficient direction to move forward. She highly
commended the project. She adjourned the meeting at 3:40 p.m.
Recorded by Lynn Taylor