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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBicycle Advisory Committee - Minutes - 10/24/2022 BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING –REGULAR October 24, 2022, 6:00 p.m. Hybrid Meeting – Zoom and 281 North College Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 1 FOR REFERENCE: Chair: Jordan Williams Vice-Chair: Dave Dixon Staff Liaison: Cortney Geary 1. CALL TO ORDER Vice Chair Dixon called the meeting to order at 6:00 PM. 2. ROLL CALL (INTRODUCTIONS) BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: CITY STAFF PRESENT: Rachel Ruhlen Jordan Williams, Chair, At Large Member Dave Dixon, Vice Chair, Bike Fort Collins Tim Anderson, Fort Collins Bike Co-op Rob Owens, Transportation Board Katherine Chu, At Large Member Marcia Richards, Parks and Recreation Board David Hansen, Colorado State University Jonathan Crozier, Poudre School District Greg Boiarsky, Air Quality Advisory Board Mike Weber, Land Conservation and Stewardship Board Todd Dangerfield, Downtown Development Authority Ed Peyronnin, Colorado State University Campus Bicycle Advisory Committee Whitney Allison, At Large Member (arrived late) ABSENT: David Kovach, Senior Advisory Board Kevin Krause, Natural Resources Advisory Board PUBLIC PRESENT: Mark Houdashelt Stephen Beckley BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 2 3. AGENDA REVIEW Greg Boiarsky introduced himself as a new member from the Air Quality Advisory Board. Vice Chair Dixon stated there were no changes to the published agenda. 4. CITIZEN PARTICIPATION Mark Houdashelt introduced himself and made some indecipherable comments. Stephen Beckley stated he was present to observe. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – SEPTEMBER 2022 Dangerfield made a motion, seconded by Crozier, to approve the minutes of the September 2022 meeting as written. The motion was adopted unanimously. 6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None. 7. NEW BUSINESS a. CDOT Safe Routes to School Grant Letter of Support Vice Chair Dixon outlined the proposed letter of support for grant funding of roadway crossings near Zach Elementary School. Geary provided additional detail on the proposed project. Peyronnin made a motion, seconded by Chu, to provide a letter of support for the Safe Routes to School grant request. (**Secretary’s Note: Whitney Allison arrived at this point in the meeting.) The motion was adopted unanimously. b. 2023 Calendar – Cortney Geary Geary stated the proposal is to continue to hold regular meetings on the fourth Monday of each month with a tentative proposal to shift the February meeting to Wednesday, the 15th, and hold a joint meeting with the Transportation Board. Additionally, the December meeting would be on the third Monday to avoid conflicts with the holidays. Chu made a motion, seconded by Richards, to adopt the 2023 calendar as presented. The motion was adopted unanimously. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 3 c. 15-Minute City Analysis – Cortney Geary Geary outlined the vision and goals of the 15-Minute City Analysis and stated strategies have been developed and the final project will be a report, but not a formal plan that will be adopted by Council. She stated the report will help to identify policy gaps in the City’s existing programs, policies, and plans and noted this work was driven by a Council priority and has strategic alignment with several overarching City plans. Geary outlined the maps of the city that provide pedestrian and cycling access information for various destination types. She discussed the core themes of the strategies developed to help improve access: increasing housing capacity in areas with strong connectivity, supporting mixed-use neighborhoods, and expanding the active transportation network. Geary detailed some of the proposed strategies under increasing housing capacity, including removing barriers to developing accessory dwelling units and to allowed capacities through Code revisions, creating additional development incentives for affordable housing, and promoting the development of affordable housing in strategic locations. She noted these strategies have also been key components of the first phase of the Land Development Code updates and are supported by the Housing Strategic Plan and City Plan. Geary went on to detail proposed strategies under supporting mixed-use neighborhoods, including updating the Land Development Code to encourage complete neighborhoods that include a variety of housing options and access to services and jobs, reviewing and updating residential zoning districts to allow more neighborhood-serving destinations and services as permitted land uses, encouraging city and government facilities and social services to locate along transit and active transportation facilities, and strengthening the requirement for mixed-use development and transit-oriented development overlay areas to encourage the mix of uses near transit. Dangerfield requested a definition of activity center. Geary replied they are places where there is a mix of uses; however, the scale of each varies. Dixon asked about the Harmony and College area. Geary replied the issue there is that neither roadway is a low-stress bicycle route. Dangerfield asked if the ultimate goal is to rezone activity centers to encourage the types of businesses and services desired. Geary replied the place types in City Plan for the activity centers are supportive of mixed-use districts; however, part of the land use diagnostic noted the zoning is not currently in place to allow for or encourage priority place types. She noted the second phase of the Land Development Code updates will look at possible rezoning for encouraging priority place types. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 4 Regarding the overall theme of expanding the active transportation network, Geary stated strategies include implementing the Active Modes Plan, intersection improvements, crossing improvements, bicycle network improvements, continuing to fill sidewalk gaps, ensure the percentage of transportation funding allocated to active modes aligns with the City’s strategic goals, and continuing to build out the paved trail network. She detailed the equity focus of the analysis which utilized the Larimer County Health Equity Index and looked at housing types. She stated areas having walking or bicycling scores of less than 40, the lowest levels of access, and health equity index scores higher than 60, the highest levels of need, were then identified. Geary outlined the next steps in the process to integrate feedback from the BAC and other groups into the summary report and then to incorporate the findings from the report into all corresponding efforts. Members discussed specific areas of the map and areas needing improvement. Boiarsky asked if there will be a stepped approach for next steps. Geary replied improvements will not be isolated just to the areas with the most need. Boiarsky expressed concern about the focus on group membership rather than severity of need in terms of how closely each of the criteria are met. Chu commented on how the priorities interact with other items. Geary concurred practical, on-the-ground knowledge will also need to be applied to more of a desktop type review. Owens asked about the City’s plan to develop density and connectivity along major corridors and not necessarily activity centers and noted this seems to be a shift in that intention. Geary replied she would follow up with planning regarding the Land Development Code changes, but noted certain changes that would incentivize densification in other areas include allowing accessory dwelling units in all zones. Owens noted there are many suburban, low-density developments throughout Fort Collins and those development patterns make it difficult for walkability. He also noted large parking lots for big box stores factor into walkability as well. Geary noted one of the recommended strategies is encouraging or requiring buildings to front on the street, which could be part of the second phase of the Land Development Code updates. Dangerfield commented the goals of this plan will be much easier to execute in yet-to-be developed portions of Fort Collins. BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 5 d. Bike Fort Collins Update – Dave Dixon Dave Dixon, Bike Fort Collins, discussed the organization’s intent to maintain a fluid list of intersections, road facilities, or improvement opportunities to help encourage bicycling for all. He stated this presentation will focus on the intersection of Remington Street and Spring Park Drive, recessed access caps, or manhole covers, and the intersection of Horsetooth Road and College Avenue. Dixon showed a video of the cycling experience at Remington and Spring Park and stated the opportunity to improve the area would include improved communication or indicators for southbound motorists on Remington as they approach Spring Park Drive to make a right-hand turn. He noted the bikeway there is a two-way shared path on which bikes do not have to stop. Dixon discussed options for increasing safety at the intersection, including various signage options, roadway painting, or installing bollards. Dangerfield suggested cyclists should also be required to stop. Peyronnin asked how the new safety stop law would impact a bike stop sign on the trail. Dixon replied bikes are required to stop if the stop sign is a message to cyclists. Richards stated she likes the idea of a sign with both a bicycle and pedestrian. Dixon asked if there would be a possibility of using customized signage. Geary replied she has seen instances where a modification is allowed to add a bike to a sign. Chair Williams stated the corridor really needs to be expanded to make it obvious it is a bicycle path, not just a sidewalk. Dixon commented on the possibility of shifting the crosswalk to make it more apparent to both cyclists and drivers. Members discussed the use of green paint to identify the bike crossing. Dixon also commented on possible signage reminding drivers to look both directions. Members discussed the lack of visibility in the area. Owens discussed the possibility of placing a speedbump in the driving lane. Hansen discussed the use of bolt-down roll-over delineators with vertical stanchions on campus. Regarding recessed access caps or manhole covers, Dixon stated the opportunity is to bring forward a process or procedure for ensuring access caps are not recessed below the grade of the street, particularly in bike lanes, when BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 6 resurfacing projects occur. Dixon suggested there could be coordination on these efforts when FC Moves is contacted about striping opportunities during repaving projects. Members also discussed including the requirement in contracts with external contractors. Dixon also noted many of these access covers are now located in bike lanes as bike lanes are being added to roadways. Dixon discussed the Horsetooth and College intersection, particularly for cyclists travelling westbound on Horsetooth approaching the College intersection. He noted the primary opportunity for improvement here is related to signal timing and motorists ignoring the red light for right turns. He showed a video of the cycling experience at the intersection and members discussed options for increasing safety at the intersection, including building in a dedicated bike/pedestrian phase into the signal timing. Dixon asked members if they have any suggestions for another intersection or area for improvement. Owens replied the intersection of Mountain and Shields has an issue with vehicles turning right in front of cyclists. Geary stated she believes that signal is getting reconstructed next year. Owens also suggested looking at the intersection of Prospect and Shields noting the timing of the light seems too short. Members commented on utilizing Access Fort Collins to report issues throughout the city. Chu commented on a mistimed light at the new Lemay and Columbia crossing and stated the pedestrian/bike crossing light should be instantaneous. Rachel Ruhlen stated the Active Modes Plan identified a number of places that would benefit from this type of in-depth review and problem identification. 8. BOARD MEMBER REPORTS Chair Williams thanked Geary for including the Vision Zero existing conditions report to the Committee’s packet. Crozier reported on the Safe Routes to School bike challenge for October and on national Bike and Walk to School Day. He also commented on the possibility of involving schools in Bike to Work Day. Hansen reported on a joint CSU/City meeting on the new safety stop law which had the goal of ensuring both entities are providing the same messaging. Additionally, he reported CSU is nearing completion of its complete streets documentation to develop standards for complete streets on campus during construction projects. He asked about an E-bike program for front line workers and whether that has been tracked. Ruhlen replied there is an app being used by those who were given bikes to track trips and associated emissions saved. She stated she also hosted an anniversary event to BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 7 discuss riders’ experiences and noted it was a pilot program. Owens suggested adding a component to Dixon’s intersection reports about whether or not the intersection is included in the Active Modes Plan. Boiarsky reported on topics discussed by the Air Quality Advisory Board, including the City budget and possible support of recommended improvements to the Power Trail going across Harmony. Anderson reported on recent success at the Bike Co-op. Weber reported on topics discussed by the Land Conservation and Stewardship Board, including natural areas, the intergovernmental agreement with Larimer County regarding the purchase of a property at the mouth of the Big Thompson Canyon, 1041 regulations, prairie dog updates, and its work plan. Dangerfield reported on the status of the three downtown alleys currently in the design phase and announced the holiday lighting ceremony on November 4th. Peyronnin reported on the joint CSU/City meeting on the new safety stop law. Dixon reported on the walk and bike to school October challenge and on the Safe Routes to School program running back at full capacity. Additionally, he reported on the program that provides bicycles to all 2nd graders in title 1 schools and on a pilot of a bike safety reporter tool that is being developed by the North Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization. 9. OTHER BUSINESS a. Transportation Board Report Owens reported the Transportation Board heard the North College MAX Plan presentation and recommended to move the plan forward to Council. Per Jerry Gavaldon’s suggestion, Owens announced a bike-in movie night at the Museo de las Tres Colonias. b. Staff Liaison Report • Active Modes Plan Geary stated the Active Modes Plan will be discussed at tomorrow’s Council work session and noted it includes the BAC’s recommendation of a 50% active modes share goal. She stated adoption of the Plan is scheduled for December. • 2023-2024 Budget Update Geary shared the 2023-2024 budget calendar and noted there seems to be Council support for funding the Shift Your Ride FTE, the school traffic safety BICYCLE ADVISORY COMMITTEE TYPE OF MEETING – REGULAR 10/2 4 /2022 – MINUTES Page 8 assessment, and neighborhood traffic mitigation. c. Future Agenda Items • 2023 Work Plan • Vision Zero 10. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 8:00 PM by unanimous consent.