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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 08/21/2007 - ITEMS RELATING TO SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL ITEM NUMBER: 13 A-B AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY DATE: August21, 2007 FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL STAFF: Kurt Ravenschlag SUBJECT Items Relating to Safe Routes to School. RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Resolution and the Ordinance on First Reading. FINANCIAL IMPACT The total cost of this project is$22,208 which is being funded from CDOT's Safe Routes to School program. This contract is for the 2007 Fiscal Year for CDOT grant funding totaling $22,208. No local match is required for this grant. Federal funds (100%) $22,208 Citv's Local Match(0%) $ 0 Total project(2007): $22,208 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY A. Resolution 2007-068 Authorizing the Execution of an Agreement Between the City of Fort Collins and the Colorado Department of Transportation(CDOT) for the Non-infrastructure Funding of the Safe Routes to School Program. B. First Reading of Ordinance No. 089, 2007, Appropriating Unanticipated Revenue in the Transportation Services Fund -FY 2007-2008 Safe Routes to School Project to Fund Safe Routes to School Programming at Five Fort Collins Elementary Schools. The City of Fort Collins Transportation Planning office has received a grant from CDOT Safe Routes to School program for FY 2007 to provide non-infrastructure Safe Routes to School funding in five local schools. This program will target students, parents, and teachers in a collaborative effort to increase the numbers of children bicycling and walking to school. Students will be encouraged to walk and bike by fun and interactive classroom programs and parents will be encouraged to allow children to walk and bike through education and community building activities. August 21, 2007 -2- Item No. 13 A-B BACKGROUND The City of Fort Collins Transportation Planning office received a grant from CDOT Safe Routes to School program for FY 2007 to provide non-infrastructure Safe Routes to School funding in five local schools including Bacon Elementary, Beattie Elementary, Laurel Elementary, Lopez Elementary, and Werner Elementary schools. Non-infrastructure funding will be used to provide in-class education, school training, site audits, encouragement and coordination of events for the 2007—2008 school years. The goal of this program is to increase the number of children bicycling and walking to the above- mentioned schools by educating children and parents about the benefits of bicycling and walking as well as alleviating the fears of parents. Students and parents will be pre- and post-tested using the National Center for Safe Routes to School student travel tally and parent survey. These surveys will be performed at the beginning of the school year and at the end of the program to measure the success of the program. Data from the student travel tally and parent's survey will be shared with the principals of each school, school officials and other schools who may be interested in the effectiveness of Safe Routes to School programs in the State of Colorado. This data will also be reported back to the National Center for Safe Routes to School for sharing with other states. Additionally,Transportation Planning will be collaborating with grant co-authors,Bicycle Colorado and Bike Fort Collins. Bicycle Colorado is an experienced contractor serving the grant by establishing an encouragement and education program in partnership with City staff. The Safe Routes to School project will provide schools with the following support: • Develop the in-class "Bike and Walk Across Colorado"program. Over a specific period of time, individual classes will track mileage biked and walked to school on a map of Colorado. Each class will work as a team to achieve chosen destinations in Colorado originating from Fort Collins. This program has the potential to tie Safe Routes to School curriculum into existing earth science, math, and history lessons. The Program will be implemented by representatives ofbicycle advocacy groups,Bicycle Colorado and Bike Fort Collins. • Publish marketing materials (pamphlet) specific to Fort Collins that educates parents, teachers, and students on the facts about walking and bicycling to school. Marketing materials will address perceived obstacles and fears associated with bicycling and walking to school. The materials also will describe positive attributes of bicycling and walking to school,such as lower traffic congestion on roadways and around schools and physical health benefits. • Host Back to School meetings for parents, teachers, and students to discuss bicycling and walking to school opportunities. The goal of these meetings is to address parents' concerns, provide infrastructure information, and to network neighbors for community projects and create neighborhood safety. • Educate students at each school in the Bicycle Colorado Safe Routes to School toolkit curriculum. Students will be taught rules of the road, street crossing safety and many other skills to help prevent bicycle and pedestrian crashes among schoolchildren in Fort Collins. August 21, 2007 -3- Item No. 13 A-B • Qualitative site audit ofbicycle and pedestrian facilities within each school's environment. Utilizing the assistance of advocacy groups, Bicycle Colorado and Bike Fort Collins, site surveys will be conducted to gain a better understanding of the school's overall atmosphere immediately before and after school. A survey of physical bicycle and pedestrian facilities will also be implemented and accompany the qualitative analysis. The information that is procured will be shared with school officials and also be used to further advance the City's online Safe Routes to School resource. By hiring the experienced contractor, Bicycle Colorado, the City of Fort Collins will be able to establish an encouragement and education program in partnership with the City staff. The school site audits will help the City identify inconsistencies in bicycle and pedestrian facilities and/or lack thereof. This program is also designed to address parental fears associated with biking and walking to school,the realities associated with School of Choice,and most importantly,to educate children on the benefits of walking and biking to school through an interactive exercise that demonstrates collective mileage walked and biked to school. Back-to-School meetings will be held at each school and will present transportation options to parents and students as well as the facts about bicycling and walking to school specific to Fort Collins. RESOLUTION 2007-068 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AUTHORIZING THE EXECUTION OF AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AND THE COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION(CDOT) FOR THE NON-INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING OF THE SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PROGRAM WHEREAS,the City has received a grant from the Colorado Department of Transportation ("CDOT") "Safe Routes to School Program"for fiscal year 2007 in the amount of$22,208.00, in order to provide non-infrastructure"Safe Routes to School"funding for five elementary schools in the City; and WHEREAS,the goal of this program is to increase the number ofchildren who are bicycling and walking to school by educating children and parents about the benefits of bicycling and walking and by alleviating the fears of parents regarding child safety; and WHEREAS, the "Safe Routes to School" project will develop "Bike and Walk Across Colorado"classes,publish marketing materials to educate parents,teachers and students on the facts about walking and bicycling to school, host back-to-school meetings for parents, teachers and students to discuss bicycling and walking to school opportunities,educate students at each ofthe five elementary schools in the"Bicycle Colorado Safe Routes to School"toolkit curriculum and provide qualitative site audits of bicycle and pedestrian facilities within each school's environments, and WHEREAS, the Council has determined that the Safe Routes to School Program is in the best interests of the City and that an intergovernmental agreement between the City and CDOT for the foregoing purposes should be executed. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS that the Mayor is hereby authorized to execute an agreement between the City of Fort Collins and the Colorado Department of Transportation for the non-infrastructure funding ofthe Safe Routes to School Program utilizing grant funds received by the City from CDOT's Safe Routes to School Program for fiscal year 2007 in a total amount of$22,208.00. Passed and adopted at a regular meeting of the Council of the City of Fort Collins this 21 st day of August, A.D. 2007. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk ORDINANCE NO. 089, 2007 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS APPROPRIATING UNANTICIPATED REVENUE IN THE TRANSPORTATION SERVICES FUND -FY 2007-2008 SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PROJECT TO FUND SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL PROGRAMMING AT FIVE FORT COLLINS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS WHEREAS, the Safe Routes to School Program, established by the Colorado Department of Transportation ("CDOT"), is designed to promote the safety and environmental conditions for students traveling to and from school and encourage more students to choose walking or bicycling to and from school; and WHEREAS,the City's Transportation Planning division applied for and has received a grant in the amount of $22,208 from CDOT to fund non-infrastructure programming in five local elementary schools including Bacon Elementary, Beattie Elementary, Laurel Elementary, Lopez Elementary, and Werner Elementary as a Safe Routes to School Project (the "Project"); and WHEREAS, the Project will include support for developing the in-class Bike and Walk Across Colorado program;publish marketing materials to educate parents,students,and teachers on the facts about walking and bicycling to school;host Back to School meetings for parents, students, and teachers to discuss,bicycling and walking opportunities to school; educate students at the selected schools in the Bicycle Colorado Safe Routes to School toolkit curriculum; and provide for qualitative site audits of bicycle and pedestrian facilities within each school's environment; and WHEREAS, there is no requirement for local matching funds associated with the Project; and WHEREAS,on August 21,2007,City Council adopted Resolution 2007-068 authorizing the Mayor to execute an intergovernmental agreement with the Colorado Department of Transportation under the"Safe Routes to School Program" for the purpose of encumbering federal funds through the CDOT in the amount of$22,208,to be used for the Project; and WHEREAS,Article V, Section 9,of the Charter of the City of Fort Collins permits the City Council to make supplemental appropriations by ordinance at any time during the fiscal year, provided that the total amount of such supplemental appropriations,in combination with all previous appropriations for that fiscal year, does not exceed the current estimate of actual and anticipated revenues to be received during the fiscal year; and WHEREAS,City staff has determined that the appropriation of grant funds totaling$22,208 will not cause the total amount appropriated in the Transportation Services Fund- FY 2007-2008 Safe Routes to School project to exceed the current estimate of actual and anticipated revenues to be received during the fiscal year; and WHEREAS, it is the desire of the City Council to appropriate the sum of$22,208 in grant funds in the Transportation Services Fund-FY 2007-2008 Safe Routes to School project to be used to provide non-infrastructure Safe Routes to School programming at five local elementary schools. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS that there is hereby appropriated for expenditure from unanticipated revenue in the Transportation Services Fund-FY 2007-2008 Safe Routes to School project the sum of TWENTY- TWO THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED EIGHT DOLLARS ($22,208)representing grant proceeds from the CDOT Safe Routes to School Program for FY 2007-2008, to be used to provide non- infrastructure Safe Routes to School programming at five local elementary schools. Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 21st day of August, A.D. 2007, and to be presented for final passage on the 4th day of August, A.D. 2007. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 4th day of August, A.D. 2007. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk -2-