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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-11-20 YBPAC MinutesYakima Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee Minutes March 11th 2020 10:00 - 11:30 AM 2nd Floor Conference Room Committee Members Staff Public Joseph Calhoun, Planning Manager Phil Mattoon, Vice Chair Trevor Martin, Associate Planner Ken Jones (3 y) Robert Desgrosellier, Chief Engineer Sean Davido, Community Relations Jennifer Gindt ( 3 y) Paul Cook (3 y) Will Hollingbery CALL TO ORDER: Phil Mattoon, Vice Chair @ 10:00 AM. There were no changes to the agenda. 1. Correction to the February 121" minutes under Deliverables to #3, should read Report from February 241" meeting/Cowiche Canyon. Otherwise, minutes are approved. 2. ADA Neil M. and Phil M. met with Robert D., Chief Engineer to review the ADA Self -Evaluation Plan and the ADA Transition Plan for any necessary updates. Those updates brought forth the change to read CITY OF YAKIMA deleting CITY OF CAMUS. The ADA Self -Evaluation Plan and the ADA Transition Plan are both necessary, working hand in hand, therefore relevant for presentation to Council. Robert D. will write the agenda statement and have Phil M. and Neil M. review in advance of April 21". Robert D. will provide materials for review prior to the April Bicycle Pedestrian Committee meeting, allowing committee discussion before addressing City Council. Presentation to City Council is set for April 21", 2020. NOTE FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEM: The Self -Evaluation report has specific recommendations in relation to city code; therefore, the committee will need to review again the ADA report after Council passes it as an official resolution; thereby relating it to Title 12 and other city ordinances. This review purpose will clarify language, minor changes, and specifics, and the specifics are most important. 3. COWICHE CANYON PROJECT Phil M. reported the meeting was very productive with representatives from Perteet and City staff. Breaking project into two projects. Phase One for 2020, and Phase Two in 2021. Phase One is Powerhouse upstream to North Canyon Rd., across from Prospect. This work area downstream to the trailhead is considered the first physical piece. Perteet is working on assurance we're standing firmly on right of way with property owners. Joseph C. reports that Planning Department has completed the County's Pre -application Meeting form. That meeting will be scheduled and that meeting will tell Planning what is needed to submit to get the First Phase done. Planning will submit the Environmental/Shoreline Conditional Use permits and go through the County to get authority to start construction. County will then do the SEPA (State Environmental Policy Act) request. The city is the lead on the project; however, the land is County jurisdiction, therefore we work with the county public services which get feedback from the property owners. Phil M. shares that Perteet wants to have full bid plan ready by August 2020. There will be a second meeting with same participants 60 days from the February 24t" meeting to clarify everyone is on the same page. Perteet finalized for Phase One: The route Parking lot at Powerhouse end Compact material (soil compacted with gravel on top, then compacted again) will be used on trial, not pavement. Perteet indicated it can work with the city on right of way issues for Phase Two. Also, a note regarding what is called the "fish window," working with the Fish and Wildlife Dept. There are certain "windows" of opportunity to work near streams and rivers without causing damage to stream beds; therefore, these fish windows should not be disruptive since the trail is not requiring concrete work except as footings for bridges, it is optimistic that the Phase One could be completed this year. Paul C. asked about maintenance contract. Robert D. shares that Cowiche Canyon Conservancy is onboard with initial maintenance and possibly future maintenance and promotion of trail use once trails are connected. CCC requests new construction materials to match with CCC existing trails; with that, there is confidence that Cowiche Canyon Conservancy will contract maintenance. 4. PEDESTRIAN MASTER PLAN The hope today is to finalize the Scope of Services allowing the plan be sent to the Purchasing Dept., then, Purchasing utilizing their data, chooses a consultant, and then forwards to the consulting firm. Trevor M. has provided committee with a draft of Scope of Services for review. Most of the corrections are simply replacing 'bicycle' with 'pedestrian'. Ken J. included language change to eliminate using the word 'route'. Addition of Complete Streets and Safe Routes to School verbiage. Under Design and Maintenance of facility plans Phil M. removed bicycle reference and changed to represent pedestrians. Under Location of Severity and Bicycle Pedestrian Crashes change language to read, Location & Severity of Pedestrian Injury Accidents. Took out verbiage about Built Environment Committee and replace with, technical staff will meet with the Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee rather than the Built Environment Committee. Maintenance Plan will identify annual ADA improvements and major maintenance needs along with suggested maintenance, because the Pedestrian Plan should compliment the ADA Plan. Under master plan deliverables: draft final pedestrian plan, network map and Safe Routes to School into data base. Committee makes a motion to send Scope of Services document to Purchasing. Motion made, second heard, and motion carried to forward said document to the Purchasing Dept. 5. TITLE 12 The task is to review and compare Title 12 with the Complete Street Ordinance. The Complete Street Ordinance basically describes what elements make a complete street. The exceptions listed in 8.06.050 are what pertains to Title 12. Looking through Title 12, 12.06.030 Design Standards and Adjustment to Standards, Final design standards and street improvements are subject to approval by city engineer. This language has been the sticking point when discussed before. The BPC has wanted to change the language. Phil M. references that the Complete Street Ordinance gives us the language we need. Paul C. suggests Title 8.96 Complete Streets requirements. Title 8 has more to offer pedestrians and cyclists. Title 12 is vague and designed to move cars. Phil M. suggests under 12.06.030 Design Standards, adjustment of standards to change verbiage from: Final design of street improvements is subject to approval by the city engineer to Final design of street improvements is subject to COMPLETE STREET ORDINANCE, reference to Chapter 8.96. Robert D. will review once new language proposed comes up. Deliverable for BPC is review changes and recommendations made to ADA for April meeting. Joseph C. clarifies process for next meeting by which a track change document would be presented to committee for review, seeing what that looks like in document format, then BPC can suggest change to a specific municipal code document. Future Deliverable for May 2020 is to review to clarify ADA recommendations, Title 8, and other city ordinances changes in documents as they relate to ADA. 6. POSSIBLE FUNDING SOURCES AND CALL FOR PROJECTS LIST FOR BICYCLE MASTER PLAN Recommendation for funding provided by Toole Design Group, LLC. Along with other funding were discussed and clarification as to their structural processes, availability and status. Updates regarding YVCog and CALL FOR PROJECTS through legislation/federal moneys; Also, probabilities would be through the Fish and Wildlife and the Dept. of Ecology. Safe Routes to School Call for Projects is tied legislatively to the license tab fee and 1-976 suspension. There is an attempt to keep legislative funds available for Safe Routes to School. Surveys are necessary to gather specific information i.e. are students driven, walking, busing, or bicycling to school. These surveyed statistics are part of the application. Next round of applications would be a truncated grant application process which we haven't seen the request for as yet. Safe Routes to School is something BPC would integrate with the Pedestrian Master Plan. The Traffic Safety Grants (state) to reduce traffic fatalities by the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. Robert D. is not sure if that is within highway traffic frame only. Transportation Improvement Board (TIB) their focus is Complete Streets currently funded through Transportation Alternative Program (TAP). Street Overlay and Reconstruction Fund affiliated with TIB. People for Bikes and other smaller entities fall under smaller groups or smaller amounts needed to spur a local project or smaller non -government grants that local groups could spear head/apply for through the city to fund Way -Finding signage or portions of pathways etc. What is important for BPC is to focus on what we can accomplish by taking specific things that we can accomplish and work towards getting them handled. Phil M is hopeful that the Legislature will make a determination about the tab funding, as they are looking at moving surplus funding over to transportation projects ($600,000,000.00). Robert D. introduces the Association of Washington Cities (AWC), a source for what's happening across the state in the legislature mostly city related but is of interested to myriad of groups for potential funding. It's suggested that perhaps BPC member add their name to that list. Another possible group is MRSC which trains new council members and gives exposure to funding sources. As a committee member, you can access and click (new council member). MRSC can be a good public information source for different funding resources. 7. GOOD OF THE ORDER A. Condition of Bicycle Lanes/ Upkeep and sweeping. Is there a schedule which includes bicycle lanes? Gravel on streets spread for safe winter driving is being swept clean. Streets and Traffic Division under Public Works. Deliverable: Information regarding sweeping the bike lanes from the city and how that is organized/scheduled. Robert D. will forward message to Scott S. To encourage safety and bicycles as their valid mode of transportation, the BPC encourages an uptick of standards for maintenance of bike lanes. Robert D. also noted streets now deemed bike routes and streets that formerly did not have bike lanes, River Rd., North First Street, and Sozo, are to be added to a sweep schedule. B. Will H. want to start conversations with the Canal Companies. The Powerhouse Canal is a piped canal with a paved pathway over it. There are so many open canals throughout our community that could be piped and covered that would open new pathways but connect our communities with pre-existing pathways; however not straight forward, but at the same time a straight forward process to chase, thereby creating miles of pathways that don't impact streets except where we cross them. It is a "tenderfoot" process because these pathways utilize backyards of our community and canal companies and it needs to be paid for; however, there's a lot of meat on the bone. Robert D. clarifies some of the reasoning behind piping and overlay of canals. Outside funding was used for the pathways next to the canals with adequate right of ways taking into the consideration, then, the newly constructed piping. Dave Brown probably has the best recollection of the background with the canal projects which occurred 25 years ago. Dave is part of the irrigation districts, by default, as those water districts were brought into the city, and Dave is head of the Water Dept. Dave would have a good understanding how to preview the process of replicating additional canal ways. Deliverable: Can the city bring information of what right of way does the city own regarding canals. 8. DELIVERABLES FOR APRIL: 1. Joan D. will attend meeting to update BPC on East/West Corridor. 2. ADA changes and finalize 3. Track changes for Title 12 & Title 8 4. Public Works, sweeping bike lanes 5. Pedestrian Master Plan report since submitting Scope of Services 6. City Right of Way ownership of which canals