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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTransportation Board - Minutes - 11/18/20151 MINUTES of the CITY OF FORT COLLINS TRANSPORTATION BOARD November 18, 2015 6:00 p.m. Community Room 215 North Mason, Fort Collins, CO 80521 FOR REFERENCE: Chair: Olga Duvall Vice Chair: Eric Shenk Staff Liaison: Paul Sizemore 970.224-6140 BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: CITY STAFF PRESENT: Olga Duvall, Chair Eric Shenk, Vice Chair Gary Thomas York Tim Sutton Greg Oakes Pat Jordan Annabelle Berklund ABSENT: Boardmember Sid Simonson Councilmember Ross Cunniff Paul Sizemore, FC Moves Program Manager Aaron Iverson, Senior Transportation Planner Mark Jackson – PDT Deputy Director Jason Holland – City Planner 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Duvall called the meeting to order at 6:02 pm with a quorum. 2. AGENDA REVIEW Sizemore stated there were no changes to the published agenda. 3. PUBLIC COMMENT None. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Thomas made a motion, seconded by Shenk, to accept the September 2015 Board minutes. The minutes were approved unanimously. (**Secretary’s Note: York arrived late and did not vote on this item.) 5. COUNCIL LIAISON Councilmember Cunniff was unable to attend; however, Chair Duvall stated she had talked with Councilmember Cunniff at the Boards and Commissions appreciation event and he is 2 aware of the Board’s work and will be attending a meeting at some point in the future. 6. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE REPORT – Greg Oakes None. 7. DISCUSSION/INFORMATIONAL ITEMS • Mountain Vista Area Update – Jason Holland Holland provided a presentation regarding the Mountain Vista area and recent charrette. He stated Council was presented with an alternative growth model for a rural scenario for this area in the summer. The Mountain Vista Area itself consists of about 3,000 acres in the City’s Growth Management Area and some of the items planned for the area include: a 100-acre community park, 100-acre school site, a gateway corridor, a 22-acre commercial area, and stormwater regional detention area. Holland stated the subarea build-out, which will be after 2040, will include a larger number of residents and employees. Additionally, Holland stated the subarea includes transportation analysis zones and we went on to discuss the analysis of the transportation network should a more rural model be used. Holland stated no changes to the Master Street Plan are being proposed and discussed the possible need for street changes in a rural scenario versus build out of the Mountain Vista Plan. He discussed traffic predictions with each scenario. Thomas asked if the impact of the two scenarios on transit service was analyzed. Holland replied in the affirmative and stated the assumption is that high frequency transit service may not exist in the area with the rural scenario. Thomas expressed concern this scenario is completely car-dependent. Holland discussed the desire for improved multi-modal trails in the area, noting the importance of memorable trail experiences. Additionally, Holland discussed the possibility of creating a trail spine along the ditch near Anheuser-Busch. He discussed existing and proposed streets in the area. York asked if there is an existing bike plan for the area. Holland replied Suniga will be an enhanced travel corridor, as will the realigned Timberline/Mountain Vista Drive. Beyond that, not much discussion has occurred regarding bicycles in the area. Thomas supported the concept of keeping the original plan with the addition of natural areas and opposed the rural option entirely. York asked if the intersections with I-25 will be improved. Mark Jackson, PDT Deputy Director, replied the Mountain Vista/I-25 interchange is not planned for significant upgrades; however, a significant upgrade is planned for the Mulberry/I-25 interchange. He stated there is no plan for making Vine an interchange. Holland stated he would return to the Board for a more formal recommendation on the topic. 3 • 2015 Year in Review – Annual Report Prep – Paul Sizemore / Mark Jackson Sizemore distributed a summary of the items which have come before the Board in 2015. He asked the Board to consider key themes and issues it would like to highlight in the annual report, how those issues aligned with the Board’s 2015 Work Plan, and how the Board aligns itself with the City’s Strategic Plan. Boardmembers discussed the importance of noting which items were supported and which were opposed. Berklund noted the Board’s dealings with Climate Action Plan issues. Chair Duvall stated the Board’s overall predominant theme over the past year was alignment with the Climate Action Plan. York suggested the inclusion of photographs and Boardmembers discussed the importance of pairing down the list to highlight items. Thomas made suggestions regarding top items considered by the Board. Sizemore stated he would draft a version of the report and return next month for additional Board review. (**Secretary’s Note: The Board took a brief recess at this point in the meeting.) 8. ACTION ITEMS • Larimer County Urban Area Street Standards – Aaron Iverson Iverson discussed the Standards as being the document outlining how streets are built in Fort Collins, Loveland and Larimer County. He stated this update adds a section on the City’s position on complete streets to accommodate all modes of transportation. Iverson discussed the Chapter 4 updates, noting the City’s Traffic Operations group oversees Transportation Impact Studies (TIS). Thomas asked about the standards in Chapter 4 which determine the level of Impact Study performed. He expressed concern that “significant neighborhood concern” about traffic impacts only triggers an intermediate TIS where a full TIS is only triggered by a great deal of volume. Iverson replied he would need to check with Traffic Operations on that topic. Thomas asked about the criteria for requiring no TIS, one of which is that there is no neighborhood impact. He questioned how that could be known if no study has occurred. Sizemore noted any project generating more than 100 peak hour trips, it already requires a full TIS, and an intermediate TIS would be required at 51-99 peak hour trips. Thomas asked about the lack of use of the phrase “adequate public facilities.” Iverson replied that policy exists outside these Standards but acknowledged the TIS would indicate whether or not an adequate public facilities (APF) test is needed. Jackson replied there is going to be additional analysis and policy work done on the APF ordinance but stated its inclusion as a reference is a good idea. 4 Thomas asked if the inclusion of using a roundabout to aid in congestion and level of service was considered. Iverson replied the document includes standards for building roundabouts and indicated he would report back to the Board with the details regarding impact to level of service. Iverson went on to discuss Chapter 7 which deals with street design and technical criteria. He stated modifications to this chapter include updates to cross-sections and updates to bicycle standards. Thomas asked if there is a correlation between speed and street design. Iverson replied in the affirmative. Iverson detailed the changes reflecting the new Bicycle Master Plan and protected bike lanes and discussed changes made to pedestrian standards, which include references to new bus stop standards. Iverson stated these changes are slated to go before Council in December, and following adoption by the cities, will go before the County Commissioners. Iverson committed to reporting back to the Board with responses to each of the questions. Thomas made a motion, seconded by Jordan, that the Transportation Board recommend approval of the Larimer County Urban Area Street Standards as modified, with additional consideration given to: the impact of neighborhood concerns on level of study, reference to the adequate public facilities ordinance, and impact of roundabouts on levels of service. The motion was approved unanimously. • 2016 Transportation Board Work Plan – Paul Sizemore / Mark Jackson Sizemore explained that this was an item required to be submitted to City Council each year. He presented the 2015 Work Plan and invited the Board to suggest updates and changes to develop a 2016 Work Plan Jordan stated she would like the City to take a more in-depth look at senior transportation. Berklund asked about the growth rate of vehicle miles travelled versus population growth. Jackson replied a metric is used to analyze that statistic, typically when the Transportation Master Plan is updated every five years. Sutton asked if the Bicycle Master Plan is fully coordinated with road construction. Oakes replied in the affirmative. Jackson agreed and stated any type of road construction consults the Plan. Jackson suggested the possible inclusion of the role of parking in terms of a systemic look at the issue and perhaps including the impact of car-sharing and services such as Uber. York suggested the possibility of sending a liaison to the Parking Board. 5 Chair Duvall suggested adding consideration of analyzing transportation for persons with disabilities. Thomas suggested the possibility of adding the Climate Action Plan as a standing item on all agendas. Berklund suggested changing the Board’s goals in terms of decreasing per capita vehicle miles travelled as well as the inclusion of additional education regarding transportation and transit issues. Sizemore reviewed the Board’s suggestions for the 2016 Work Plan. Thomas made a motion, seconded by Oakes, to adopt the 2016 Work Plan as outlined. The motion was approved unanimously. 9. REPORTS • Boardmember Reports Thomas reported on Loveland’s upcoming study of its transit system, the new ozone standards from the Regional Air Council, and the suspension of Dial-a-Ride fares for the remainder of the year. Additionally, he reported on his attendance at the Front Range on Track meeting regarding bringing commuter rail to Northern Colorado. Sutton and Berklund reported on the Bike and Walk Conference in Greeley and the Project Success Stories presentations. York reported on Coalition for Infrastructure discussions regarding recording accurate bicycle crash data. Additionally, he reported on the Northside Community Celebration and discussions regarding connectivity from the BAVA neighborhoods. York also reported on the North Colorado Bike/Pedestrian Conference and the Built Environment Working Group and suggested some of the federal funding for the MAX project could be used on grade-separated crossings. Jackson replied there are a great number of limitations on what those dollars can and cannot fund. The Board inquired about the status of the train horn waiver. Sizemore replied it was submitted and reviewed and a decision has been made; however, it has not been released. Jackson replied that appears to be true and added that, nationally, there is a great deal of pressure on the Federal Railroad Administration to revisit the rule as it sits. Chair Duvall reported on the Boards and Commissions open house dealing with strategic planning. She requested a staff explanation of the Legislative Policy Agenda. Sizemore replied the document outlines areas in which the City intends to work with the Legislature regarding different bills. • Staff Report Sizemore reported on the Mulberry Bridge opening to two-way traffic and the completion of the paving on North College. Additionally, he announced an open house for the West 6 Elizabeth Enhanced Corridor Plan. Sizemore stated there is a Police Officer who is primarily responsible for truck weight enforcement and that scales at the port of entry are used if a truck is suspected to be overweight. Additionally, there are two or three days per summer that are dedicated as truck enforcement days. Sizemore announced the City did not receive the TIGER grant to fund the grade- separated crossing at Vine and Lemay. Sizemore announced the Women’s Transportation Seminar stating one ticket remains for a reception on December 2nd. Sutton asked if Boardmembers are allowed to talk to City staff in terms of seeing something that needs to be fixed. Staff replied in the affirmative, noting Boardmembers are citizens. Sutton asked about the southbound and northbound signs on buses travelling east and west and expressed concern regarding road closures for construction. Jackson noted the City and Town Councils from Fort Collins, Loveland, Berthoud, Timnath, and Estes Park all passed resolutions of support for a Larimer County Commissioner proposal to temporarily reapportion part of their general fund mill levy to their road and bridge fund, which will create $5-6 million in local matching funds to be used specifically for I-25 improvement projects. 10. OTHER BUSINESS None. 11. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 9:15 p.m. by unanimous consent.