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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/01/2016 - Minutes - Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Greenways Advisory BoardCITY OF COLIEGE STATION jhn,,4 a%'7rrar A.A1 University' MINUTES BICYCLE, PEDESTRIAN, AND GREENWAYS ADVISORY BOARD Monday, February 1, 2016 3:00 PM College Station City Hall Council Chambers 1101 Texas Avenue College Station, Texas, 77840 MEMBERS PRESENT: Chairman Blanche Brick, James Batenhorst, Brandon Boatcallie, Jon Denton, Phillip Lasley, Scott Shafer STAFF PRESENT: Greenways Program Manager Venessa Garza, Assistant Director of Planning and Development Molly Hitchcock, Board Secretary Amber Johnson AGENDA ITEM NO. 1: Call to Order. Chairman Brick called the meeting to order at 3:03 p.m. AGENDA ITEM NO. 2: Hear Visitors There were no visitors present to address the Board. AGENDA ITEM NO. 3: Consideration, discussion, and possible action to approve meeting Minutes. Board Member Denton motioned to approve the meeting minutes from January 4, 2016. The motion was seconded by Board Member Boatcallie and was approved (5-0). AGENDA ITEM NO. 4: Presentation, possible action, and discussion regarding a recommendation on the Capital Improvements Program - Trail Projects and Priorities. Greenways Program Manager Garza presented this item to the board. Trail projects and priorities are reviewed every year for submission in the annual Capital Improvement Program process as unfunded projects for consideration. Trail projects are currently prioritized based on the methodology used during the creation of the Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Greenways Master Plan. This list is based on short (0-10 years), near (11-20 years) and long term (21-30 years) prioritization. All projects were reviewed last year and a top 3 list was determined based on the following criteria: 1. Ownership - Higher priority to City owned property or existing easements. 2. Immediacy of Development in the surrounding area - Higher priority to areas where residential development will occur in the next few years 3. Other factors considered: a. Safety b. Connectivity to Schools and Parks c. Regional Connectivity Board Member Lasley joined the meeting at 3:07 p.m. Staff is recommending that the priorities stay unchanged and is requesting a recommendation from the Board for submission in the FY17 Capital Improvement Program budget process. The current priorities as voted on by the board in January 2015 are as follows: Name 1 College Avenue Side Path 2 Bee Creek West Trail 3 Spring Creek Trail Miles 0.79 0.42 3.49 Priority Short-term Short-term Short-term Notes To be funded with MPO FY19 Submitted Unfunded project Submitted Unfunded project Chairman Brick asked what the best way would be to advocating for more funding for these type of projects. Assistant Director Hitchcock stated that the best suggestion may be to break these projects into smaller phases so that when funding does become available the projects are more viable. Manager Garza stated that she could potentially separate the Spring Creek Trail project into phases and discussed which sections would be valuable to start with. Board Member Shafer stated that the Spring Creek Trail would be a valuable project to prioritize due to transportation and recreational connectivity the trail would provide but the cost of the project is a concern. Board Member Shafer stated that it may be beneficial to have signs created that would raise awareness in the community of the trail projects when a trail is proposed where residential development hasn't occurred yet. Manager Garza stated that informational signs may be a good idea to create more awareness. However, Ms. Garza noted that sometimes the trails take a longer time to fund and signage would be something that would need to be agreed upon with the developer. Board Member Shafer stated that there should be a mechanism that allows the trails to be installed in conjunction with new streets in new housing developments and should be seen as an amenity. Board Member Batenhorst stated that if it is something that is designated on the Master Plan that it would be something the developer is responsible for. Manager Garza stated that although the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) states "design and build" the city has never required the development of trails. Chairman Brick asked if that is something that could be recommended by this board. Board Member Batenhorst stated that there is some hesitancy due to the legalities of making that type of request. Manager Garza stated that there would need to be an examination of the legal aspects that other communities encountered. Assistant Director Hitchcock stated that there is the issue of proportionality. In requiring developers to build these trails there is a question of fairness in terms of how much residents of the development would utilize the trails versus how often it would be used by the community as a whole. Board Member Shafer stated that the funding of the trails in the future could come through the use of Parkland Dedication fees. Manager Garza stated that would be something that could be looked into and discussed with the Parks Department and the Parks and Recreation Board. Board Member Batenhorst stated that he is pleased with the list of present trail project priorities. Board Member Shafter agreed that the present list looks good but that it may be beneficial to have the separation of the projects into phases as previously discussed. Board Member Batenhorst motioned to recommend approval of the Capital Improvements Program - Trail Projects and Priorities list. The motion was seconded by Board Member Shafer and was approved (6-0). AGENDA ITEM NO. 5: Presentation and discussion regarding Capital Improvement Projects for FY16 that include bicycle and pedestrian facilities. Greenways Program Manager Garza presented this item to the board. Ms. Garza updated the board on the Capital Improvement Projects that include bicycle and pedestrian facilities that are to be funded in Fiscal Year 2016. AGENDA ITEM NO. 6: Presentation and discussion regarding education and encouragement opportunities such as Brazos Valley Earth Day. Greenways Program Manager Garza presented this item to the board. Brazos Valley Earth Day will be held on April 23, 2016 at Wolf Pen Creek and an email will be sent out to allow the board to volunteer at the event. Ms. Garza stated that she is looking at suggestions for new items to hand out to event attendees. Board Member Shafer suggested purchasing reflective sticker sets that can be placed on bicycles. AGENDA ITEM NO. 7: Presentation and discussion regarding BPG Subcommittee Updates Greenways Program Manager Garza presented this item to the board. Ms. Garza stated that there were no new updates regarding the Subcommittees. AGENDA ITEM NO. 8: Presentation and discussion regarding the Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Greenways Advisory Board calendar of upcoming meetings. • February 4, 2016 N Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting - City Hall, Council Chambers N 6:00 p.m. • February 18, 2016 N Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting - City Hall, Council Chambers N 6:00 p.m. • March 3, 2016 N Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting « City Hall, Council Chambers N 6:00 p.m. • March 7, 2016 N Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Greenways Advisory Board N City Hall, Council Chambers N 3:00 p.m. AGENDA ITEM NO. 9: Possible action and discussion on future agenda items - A Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Greenways Advisory Board Member may inquire about a subject for which notice has not been given. A statement of specific factual information or the recitation of existing policy may be given. Any deliberation shall be limited to a proposal to place the subject on an agenda for a subsequent meeting. Greenways Program Manager Garza stated that the Director of the Parks Department, David Schmitz, will be attending the next meeting to discuss the Unpaved Trail Project at Chesapeake and Alexandria. Board Member Shafer asked if Mr. Schmitz would be able to speak to the board regarding the idea that was discussed involving the Parkland Dedication funds. AGENDA ITEM NO. 10: Adjourn. The meeting adjourned at 4:16 p.m. Blanche Brick, Ch rman ATTEST: iu0n.0) ) Amber Johnson, oard Secretary