Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutTransportation Board - Minutes - 02/15/20171 MINUTES of the CITY OF FORT COLLINS TRANSPORTATION BOARD February 15, 2017 6:00 p.m. Streets Department 598A Linden Street Fort Collins, CO FOR REFERENCE: Chair: Eric Shenk Vice Chair: Annabelle Berklund Staff Liaison: Paul Sizemore 970.224-6140 BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: CITY STAFF PRESENT: Eric Shenk, Chair Annabelle Berklund, Vice Chair Gary Thomas Cari Brown Tim Sutton Valerie Arnold Indy Hart Andrew Bondi York ABSENT: Councilmember Ross Cunniff Dean Klingner Darrin Moritz PUBLIC PRESENT: Karl Ayers 1. CALL TO ORDER Chair Shenk called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM. 2. AGENDA REVIEW Sizemore stated there were no changes to the published agenda. 3. PUBLIC COMMENT 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Sizemore pointed out several locations in the draft minutes where minor revisions were made. Thomas made a motion, seconded by York, to adopt the January 2017 minutes as amended. The minutes were adopted unanimously. 5. COUNCIL LIAISON 2 Councilmember Cunniff was unable to attend. 6. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE REPORT – York York reported a new Chair and Vice Chair of the BAC were elected, and the Committee provided feedback on the Bicycle Friendly Community application for the League of American Bicyclists. Fort Collins is currently rated “platinum” and has the goal of maintaining that status for this cycle and aiming for “diamond” status in the future. The Committee also heard a bike share update and discussed Fort Collins being selected for the Big Jump Project which is a contest to motivate communities to more than double the number of people participating in bicycling and walking in a specific neighborhood. A board member inquired what the community is lacking to get to the “diamond” status. York replied he was unsure specifically; however, requirements are significantly above the “platinum” status. 7. DISCUSSION/INFORMATIONAL ITEMS • 2017 Capital Projects Update – Dean Klingner Klingner discussed last year’s major projects on East Prospect Road and upcoming projects involving full or partial closures at College and Prospect and Elizabeth and Shields. He showed photos of the new underpass at Center. Klingner detailed the College and Prospect project stating the primary goal is a 20% reduction in congestion. The project will also include significant sidewalk improvements. Sutton asked if the City has a right of first refusal or other agreement with property owners at Prospect and Remington to purchase the properties in the future. Klingner replied all options were on the table during negotiations and the City would have the opportunity to widen the sidewalk should the use change. A board member inquired about the possibility of utilizing a roundabout for the intersection. Klingner replied analysis showed a roundabout would not be successful with the volume at the intersection. Klingner discussed the process used in identifying a contractor for the Prospect and College project. In terms of the Shields and Elizabeth CSU underpass project, Klingner stated the communication with the City has been successful. He stated there will be a full closure of Shields Street February 25-March 19. Arnold asked if there was any thought regarding doing the project in the summer when less students are present. Klingner replied the schedule has been based on the stadium opening. Klingner discussed various street maintenance projects and public outreach and messaging. York asked about signage for a project on Ziegler which he did not feel sufficiently 3 communicated the traffic pattern for access for all transportation modes. Klingner replied there are some requirements for signage in the Uniform Traffic Code; however, he stated he will look into the specifics of the area. Berklund asked if Remington is open to bikes in both directions. Klingner replied in the affirmative. • Streets and Snow Removal Operations – Darrin Moritz Moritz discussed the overall Streets budget and its allocations for maintenance and snow and ice removal. Brown asked if there is a separate budget for snow and ice removal for bus stops. Moritz replied the company responsible for bus stop maintenance is responsible for snow removal. Sidewalks are primarily the responsibility of private property owners who must shovel within 24 hours of snow ceasing. Moritz stated there are 557 miles of paved roads in Fort Collins, based on center lanes, and discussed the methods by which roads are evaluated for roughness. He noted water is the primary negative force on roads and discussed ways in which maintenance combats and treats water issues. Moritz discussed methods of public outreach used for street projects and the group discussed the maintenance issues regarding CDOT’s ownership of College Avenue. The group toured the snow maintenance area and discussed snow removal operations. Berklund asked about plowing into bike lanes. Moritz replied that is not supposed to occur; however, private snow removal companies sometimes remove snow into plowed areas. Moritz discussed the plowing of protected bike lanes. A board member asked about bicycle counts in the winter months. Sizemore replied counts are not completed in the winter except in a few locations where there are continuous counters, primarily on trails; however, there is likely a way to extrapolate that data. Winter Bike to Work Day is one way to track annual trends in winter riding. Moritz discussed the fleet of snow removal vehicles and process for making school closure decisions. A great deal of additional resources are required to plow residential streets and that decision is made based on the snow amount. Moritz discussed the products used in snow and ice removal and detailed Fort Collins’ manufacturing of salt brine, which is somewhat unique. He detailed the snow removal shift schedule and process of towing vehicles left in Old Town. Berklund asked about summer street sweeping. Moritz replied that is a very scheduled process which citizens can research on the City’s website. 8. ACTION ITEMS • Election of Officers 4 Thomas made a motion, seconded by Bondi, to re-elect incumbent Chair Shenk and Vice Chair Berklund. The motion was approved unanimously. Shenk stated that he had spoken with York and that he was willing to continue as the Board Liaison to the Bicycle Advisory Committee. 9. REPORTS • Boardmember Reports Hart stated he would like to see a public educational effort regarding the flowline issue described by Moritz. He requested the Board receive a presentation regarding game day plans for the new stadium, and that the board receives presentations on longer term projects in the pipeline. Chair Shenk stated this is Sutton’s last meeting and thanked him for his service on the Board. • Staff Report Sizemore discussed upcoming agenda items. 10. OTHER BUSINESS None. 11. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at 8:43 p.m. by unanimous consent.