HomeMy WebLinkAboutSOUTH TRANSIT CENTER - PDP - 9-10 - CORRESPONDENCE - CORRESPONDENCE-NEIGHBORHOOD MEETINGNeighborhood Information Meetinq
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F6rt Collins
- The applicant is willing to make reasonable accommodations if the
neighbors think the speakers are too loud, like turning the sound down
and off on bus bays that are not being used. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- The City's Code Compliance Officers will also come and check sound
levels if the residents have problems once the facility is built. (Emma
McArdle, Planning)
33)How many bus bays are there?
- 11 bays, not all will be in use at once. Some are for overflow and dial -a -
ride pick-up/drop-off. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
34)Was the elevation of the Crest Road neighborhood considered when designing
the site?
- No
35)Could bus lights be turned off at the station?
- Most likely no. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
36)Will the hearing officer be made aware of the concerns that were brought up at
this meeting?
- Staff looked into this and because public comment was closed at the
public hearing, these notes could not be shared with the hearing officer.
(Emma McArdle, Planning)
37)Why weren't property owners more than 800' away notified of this proposal?
- The City's Land Use Code requires notification of property owners within
800' feet. Neighbor's beyond the 800' minimum were notified of the
hearing and neighborhood meeting in some cases because sometimes
only one or two properties within a neighborhood were within the 800'
range; in those cases staff included the whole neighborhood in the mailing
list. (Emma McArdle, Planning)
38)Where are the current transfers being made that will be made at this facility in the
future?
- The Square Shopping Center, it is at full capacity and the lease is up this
year. Alternative arrangements will need to be made until this site is
available. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
39)What is the usage of the buses in Fort Collins?
- Transfort uses performance metrics that say 28 passengers per hour
should be on all buses. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
5
23)Will the buses be natural gas by the time this facility opens?
- The applicant cannot guarantee that all buses will be natural gas, but they
most likely will be. The worse case scenario is 4 of the 34 bus fleet may
still be diesel powered. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
24)Will the bus route cross the Mason Corridor Trail pedestrian path?
- This will be part of the Mason Corridor project, but yes it will in some
areas. The plan does not change the trail location. (Kurt Ravenschlag,
Transfort)
25)What will be between the bus and the trail?
- This depends on the location, on this site a four foot landscape strip and
curb will separate the bus travel lane from the pedestrian path. The
applicant is not sure how other areas along the Mason Corridor are
treated. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort).
26)What is a comparable crossing to the crossings of the bus travel lane and the
pedestrian trail?
- The applicant and staff are unsure how to answer. The crossings are
being designed as any road would be. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
27)What is the expected number of users?
- The parking lot is sized at 169 spaces. Hard to give a real number, the
bus frequency will be Y2 to % of the frequency of the Old Town facility.
(Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
28)How will you handle growth?
- The site is sized for 20 years out, but structure parking or purchasing more
land is a possibility if needed. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
29)Are there discussions going on about relocating the railroad?
- Maybe with CDot, not on the City's end. (Ward Stanford, Traffic
Operations)
30)What is the construction timeline?
- Construction is planned for a 10 month period. (Matt Newman, ALM
Architects)
- Expected to begin construction in early spring 2011. (Kurt Ravenschlag,
Transfort)
31)Was there any federal involvement in this plan? Was a National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) study done for this site?
- Yes, one was done with a finding of "no significant impact" in 2008. (Kurt
Ravenschlag, Transfort)
32)What if the sound study is inaccurate? What is the process for fixing it or other
problems that arise after it is built?
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Fort Collins
15)How will the loud speakers work, what is their frequency and how late will they be
used?
- The speakers are directed toward the riders on the platform. (Kurt
Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- These differ from the speakers at the elementary school because they are
intended for users on the platform, not for children all over the playground.
(Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
16)At what atmospheric pressure was the sound study done at?
- Sound travels differently in different conditions. (Neighbor)
- The analysis was done with a flat plane; therefore there were no buffering
such as topography, landscaping, winds, other noises, etc. This means it
was looking at the worst case scenario. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
17)Why wasn't a solid fence chosen rather than a wall or solid fence to buffer
sound? (Neighbor)
- The fence on the plans is the existing fence that was built along the
railroad tracks through much of town. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- This was chosen to stay consistent. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- The existing berm that is the railroad tracks is an example of what most
designers would use as a sound buffer. (Matt Newman, Aller Lingle
Massey Architects, Consultant)
18)Would you want to live behind this facility? (Neighbor)
19)Some of the residents along Crest Road do not think this is the right use for this
site. They are concerned about what they will hear, smell and see from the site.
(Neighbor)
20)Neighbors would like the applicant to accommodate their concerns at a minimum.
This includes minimizing the impacts on the neighborhoods to the west.
(Neighbor)
- What would make this better for the neighbors? (Applicant)
- One resident suggested a solid wall. Other neighbors did not appear to
agree or disagree with this suggestion.
21)Will Greyhound be permitted to use the facility?
- This is very unlikely; Greyhound prefers to be located in high use areas
such as intersection of major highways. The Old Town Transit Center is
right off of a designated truck route State Highway 287 and 14; this site is
not expected to ever fit their needs. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
22)Could buses go through Cameron Park?
- Staff is pretty sure there is a public road that could be used, but was not
familiar enough with the area to comment on bus use. (Ward Stanford,
Traffic Operations)
3
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7) How can the facility be expanded in the future?
- This facility is designed to be sized for 20 years out. (Kurt Ravenschlag,
Transfort)
8) Will the city use eminent domain if the site needs more parking?
- The City tries to avoid eminent domain and find willing sellers. (Kurt
Ravenschlag, Transfort)
9) Why wasn't a property selected for this use further south?
- This site was purchased over 10 years ago. Several criteria were used
when selecting this site, such as: proximity to railroad tracks and other
trails, approximately 4 acres in size, proximity to Mason Street Corridor
and other criteria that this site met. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
10)Was the lumber yard property considered?
- No, this site only recently became available (last 1-2 years), and this site
was purchased over 10 years ago. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
11)How will loud speakers be used on the site?
- Loud speakers are required to meet ADA accessibility requirements
(visual and sound alerts are required). (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
12)How lit will the property be and how late?
- The project is going after LEED Gold Certification, which does not allow
light to spill off the site. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- The City also has lighting standards that all developments must comply
with (Section 3.2.4 of the LUC).
13)The traffic increases are our primary concern as it is already a very congested
area on Harmony between Crest Road and College Avenue. There are existing
signals (pedestrian and traffic) and with the addition of this signal for the buses
the neighbors only see this area getting worse. (Neighbor Comment)
- The buses could create a gap of traffic so people can turn west from Crest
Road easier. These lights are supposed to be coordinated to avoid repeat
stops as much as possible. (Ward Stanford, Traffic Operations)
- Residents say this is not the case currently.
14)Why was the pedestrian cross not made at Mason rather than having another
light just for the pedestrians?
- Staff is unsure but speculated that the acquisition of the additional
property needed to move the trail to that location was not an option,
because it is private property. (Ward Stanford, Traffic Operations)
2
will not be the case, it is expected that only 4 of the 34 bus fleet will be diesel by
the time this facility opens. Diesel powered buses produce 85 decibels of sound
(comparable to a noisy office or a police whistle), a radii around the facility was
done indicating that the Crest Road neighborhood will only hear approximately
20 decibels from the station, this is comparable to a watch ticking. The study
was completed on a flat plane, not considering white noise, landscaping or
topography. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
Neighbor's Questions:
1) Is this station the end of the line?
- It will be the ultimate south terminus of the Mason Corridor Bus Rapid
Transit route, but no it is not the end of the line. Buses will be coming
from the north and south to this site. The FLEX bus route will use this site,
which stops in Longmont, Loveland and Berthoud. (Kurt Ravenschlag,
Transfort)
2) What will the frequency be?
- Not all bus bays will be in use at all times, some are for overflow and there
is a bay for dial -a -ride users. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- The frequency varies depending on the route and the time of day. During
the peak of the day, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) buses will come through the
station every 10 minutes and other bus routes are more like every 60
minutes. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
- The overall frequency is expected to be % to % of the frequency that the
Old Town Station sees. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
3) How will traffic be managed on Harmony Rd with the new traffic light that will be
added at the Mason Street Extension?
- The light being referred to is not being proposed with this project and will
only be installed if and when the Mason Street Extension is built
connecting to this site (part of the Mason Street Corridor Project).
- The lights along Harmony should currently be and are planned to be timed
so that repeat stops are minimized through this short section of road with
several signals. (Ward Stanford, Traffic Operations)
4) Do you (traffic operations) expect the future signal at Mason and Harmony to
impact the traffic on Harmony Road?
- Yes, it will but it will be coordinated with the other lights to minimize repeat
stops. (Ward Stanford, Traffic Operations)
5) What is the size of the property the STC is proposed on?
- 4.3 acres (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
6) How much is being used in this proposal?
- The whole site is being used. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
1
�t Collins
INFORMATIVE NEIGHBORHOOD MEETING
PROJECT: South Transit Center
DATE: November 23, 2010
Community Development and
Neighborhood Services
281 North College Avenue
PO Box 580
Fort Collins, CO 80522
970.221.6750
970.224.6134 - fax
fcgov. com/developmentreview
APPLICANT: Transfort and consultants: Aller Lingle Massy Architects, BHA
Design and HDR Engineering
PLANNER: Emma McArdle
The public hearing for the South Transit Center, Project Development Plan, was held on
November 15, 2010. The day following the hearing, several neighbors (some on the
Affected Property Owner mailing list and some outside of the 800' notification range)
voiced their concerns about the project via emails to Pete Wray, hearing officer, and
Emma McArdle, project planner. Public testimony was closed at the public hearing;
therefore, hearing officer, Pete Wray was not able to use the new information in the
formulation of his decision on the project. The applicants were made aware of the
public concern and choose to have an informal information meeting with these
concerned residents, as another opportunity for the neighbors to learn about the project.
An informal neighborhood meeting was held on November 23, 2010, where the
following discussion occurred:
Applicant's Presentation:
1) To clarify, though this project will be associated with the Mason Corridor Project
when it is built out, the South Transit Center (STC) is a stand-alone station and
would be needed regardless of the Mason Corridor Project. The STC will
function utilizing the Fossil Boulevard/Fairway Lane connection off of College
Avenue for all bus and vehicle traffic until the time that the Mason Corridor
Project is built; then only BRT buses will use the Mason Street Extension built
with the Mason Corridor Project. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
2) Only one bus route will be using the Mason Street Extension that crosses
Harmony Road that is the Bus Rapid Transit line that will travel the Mason
Corridor. The rest of the buses will access the site via Fairway Lane and Fossil
Boulevard. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
3) Based on feed back from the hearing, the applicants have decided to change the
canopy shade trees on the west boundary to a more dense evergreen type
foliage. (Kurt Ravenschlag, Transfort)
4) A study was done regarding the sound that will be emitted from this site; see the
included PowerPoint presentation with more information). This looked at the
worst case scenario, which would be all diesel powered buses. Keep in mind this