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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-02-05 MinutesCity Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 1 of 16 Member Aldermen Mayor Dan Coody Ward 1 Position l — Brenda Thiel V10 Ward 2 Position 2 — Nancy Allen CityAttorney Kit Williams � 1 Ward 3 Position 2—Robert Ferrell Ward 4 Position 2 - Lioneld Jordan City Clerk Sondra Smith ARKANSAS City of Fayetteville Arkansas City Council Street Committee Meeting Minutes February 5, 2007 A meeting of the Fayetteville City Council Street Committee was held on February 5, 2007 at 4:30 p.m. in Room 219 of the City Administration Building located at 113 West Mountain Street, Fayetteville, Arkansas. MEMBERS PRESENT: Alderman Lioneld Jordan, Chair; Alderwoman Nancy Allen; Alderman Robert Ferrell; Alderwoman Brenda Thiel Other Aldermen Present: Alderman Kyle Cook; Alderwoman Shirley Lucas Staff Present: Ron Petrie, Gary Dumas, Tony Johnson, Greg Tabor, Terry Gulley, Perry Franklin, Paul Becker 1. Call to order The meeting was called to order by Chairman Lioneld Jordan. 2. Approval of the minutes from the January 11, 2007 Street Committee Meeting Alderman Ferrell moved that the minutes of the Street Committee meeting held on January ll, 2007 be approved as submitted. Alderwoman Allen seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. 3. Transportation Bond Program Update A. Presentation of the preliminary schematic drawings for the Mount Comfort/Salem/Deane Solomon intersection (This item was tabled at the Jan. ll, 2007 Street Committee Meeting) Ron Petrie said this item was discussed at the last meeting in some detail. Staff has continued to meet and discuss this with the three primary property owners for this part of the project. He said 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 2 of 16 all three families (Denham, Hayes and Nelms) have been very good to work with and he appreciates their cooperation with staff. Mr. Petrie discussed Options A, B, and C for this intersection. He said Option C is recommended by staff and (he believes) by adjacent property owners. Staff recommends that Shiloh Drive be the primary access road because they believe this is where the traffic will be in the future. He presented a table showing a comparison of the three options to the Committee. He said overall, the cost for Option C is a little less than Option B. The number of structures removed on Option A is seven; Option B is four and Option C is one. Alderman Jordan opened the floor to public comment. There being none, he brought the discussion back to the Street Committee. Alderwoman Lucas and Alderwoman Allen both said they like Option C. Ron Petrie said the staff would like to get an idea from the Committee which option they prefer so they can begin to work on the design. Alderman Cook said he likes Option C. He said with that option fewer structures would have to be removed and it is the cheapest option as far as the estimates are concerned. He has been thinking not just about this intersection but how the intersection connects to the rest of the town and he believes Option C is the best choice for traffic flow and connectivity. Alderman Jordan said he also prefers Option C. He feels it is a really good plan. Alderwoman Allen moved that the Committee approve Option C. Alderman Ferrell seconded the motion and is passed unanimously. In response to a question from Alderman Cook, Ron Petrie said it is his understanding that the Hayes family prefers the alternate alignment because of the possibility of a four-way signal onto their property once that property is developed. B. Presentation of the Zion Road Conceptual Design Ron Petrie said the City is designing this project in-house. Chris Brown and Paul Libertini are doing the design work. Chris Brown handed out the concept as it is at this point. He also showed the Committee the original concept which was part of the informational packets that went out before the vote. The estimated cost for that design was $2.54 million. He said they are making sure they hit that number on this project. He described the project limits: on the west the project ends near the highway right-of-way; the east end of the project stops just before the curves. He said the area of the Lowe's driveway will be a little tricky. They are looking at possibly dropping off the sidewalk between the Lowe's driveway and the west end of the project since there is no sidewalk on Hwy. 71 B. They will also have to work around the large power poles in front of Lowes. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 3 of 16 They'll probably have to move the sidewalk around a little in that area. He said they will run into a lot of trees on the east end of the project. They will save all the trees that can be saved, but some will have to be removed. He said the approved typical section (the proposed width of the road, trail sidewalk, etc.) that went to the vote was a 44 -ft. wide back-to-back section with six foot sidewalks on each side. The 14 -ft. outside lanes that are shown on that typical section are for the use of bikes. This has been modified a little by adding a 10 ft. trail on the north side, especially between Vantage and the Memorial Park Drive. The cost estimate for that section is about $2.4 million. The 44 -ft. width of the original section takes up a lot of space and takes out several trees. As an alternate, staff would like to talk about a narrower section, changing 14-11. lanes to 11 ft. outside lanes, reducing the width of the road to 38 ft. A 12 -ft. trail will be added to the north side. The estimated cost for that section is about $2.25 million (a savings of around $150,000). The proposed section would reduce the right-of-way needs and it would save some trees. Staff wanted to present this to the Committee and to get feedback about which typical section the Committee would prefer. Once this step is complete, staff will meet with property owners and have a public meeting. Alderman Ferrell said he understands the idea of narrowing the road but wondered if it is possible to make part of the structures outside the lanes narrower, keeping the width of the street and still stay out of the trees and accomplish the same savings. Chris Brown said from a right-of-way standpoint that is absolutely possible. He said we could start by reducing the 10 -ft. greenspace. That would reduce the footprint of the street. Alderman Ferrell said he would like to have greenspace but he would also like to have nice lanes and thinks that option is worth looking in to. Chris Brown said the 14 -ft. outside lane, although not quite wide enough to call a bike lane, does allow bikes and cars to co -exist a little easier on that section. He said if you reduce it to 11 ft., it is still perfectly adequate for traffic purposes but would not provide as good access for bikes. The adding of the trail on the north side is intended for use by the bikes in lieu of the extra width of the lane. In response to a question from Alderman Ferrell, Chris Brown said the improvement is a total of 2400 ft. from start to finish. The center turn lane will be striped as a continuous turn lane with yellow stripes on each side. At street intersections it will be striped out with white lines and provide turn lanes that way. Alderman Ferrell said he and the citizens of this ward are very happy that we are working on something in this area to help with the east/west corridor. Alderwoman Thiel said though she is not a bike rider, she knows that people who ride bikes as transportation like to have the bike access on the road itself rather than off on a trail. Trails are largely used by pedestrians and there can be a conflict with bikes and people on the trails. She 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 4 of 16 sees that as an advantage to keeping the width as originally proposed. She obviously likes the cost savings associated with going to a smaller width but overall would rather see the trail at 10 ft., adding back the width of the outside lane to allow bikes access. She also asked if there is a real cost savings to having a continuous turn lane in the center instead of having turn lanes at the intersections only, with plantings in the remaining area. Chris Brown said there are enough intersections on this section that by the time you put in the turn lanes, tapers, etc. there wouldn't be much space left for medians. Alderman Cook said the Sidewalk & Trails Committee discussed our street cross sections and had talked about and supported the 14 -ft. wide lane. While the 3 extra feet is technically not wide enough for a bike lane, it at least provides a safe area were bicyclists can ride. Most bikers prefer to be on the street rather than off the street. He said it is safer for bikes to be on the street because they are seen. He said the trails master plan supports 12 ft. wide trails. Though this will be a connection to the trail systems, the Sidewalk & Trails Committee supported the 14 ft. wide lane. Alderwoman Lucas said she is happy to see this being done because it is an entrance to our area. She will be happy when we can go all the way over to Hwy. 265. Alderman Jordan said he is very pleased to see this going forward because this can eventually make the connection to Hwy 265, on to the Mall and to Rupple Rd. etc. and create a loop around the city. Alderman Jordan opened the floor for public comment. There being none, he brought the discussion back to the Street Committee. Alderman Ferrell said he would like to visit with Alderman Rhoads about the proposals. Alderman Jordan agreed to table the discussion until the next meeting to allow time for Alderman Ferrell to discuss the options with Alderman Rhoads. C. General Update of the Street Bond Program Chris Brown presented a summary schedule of the program. On the Wilson Park/Washington/Willow transportation improvements, a concept design for the intersection of Gregg and North should be ready for presentation to the Committee in March. Staff is still working with the neighborhood association to get a final plan for traffic calming in the Wilson Park area. Staff just received comments back from the AHTD on the Cato Springs Rd. project so they should be able to get started on the conceptual design. Garver Engineers will have 90 days to complete the concept design. He said that Carter & Burgess is finalizing a presentation for the Street Committee to show some of the concepts on the Expressway Corridor around CMN and the mall. According to Mr. Brown's last conversation with the Highway Department regarding 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 5 of 16 their projects, a Minute Order should be issued on the Hwy 16 and Garland Avenue projects, which will allow the AHTD staff to begin work on design on those projects Ron Petrie added that the public meetings for Crossover Road project have been pushed back until late March according to his contact with the AHTD. They want to bring this forward at the same time they bring the northern section in Springdale. He said when a final date is set he will pass that along. Alderman Jordan opened the floor for public comment There being none, the discussion was brought back to the Committee. D. Discussion of the Public Involvement Process for the Transportation Bond Program Ron Petrie said staff wants to make sure the public involvement process is handled the way the Committee wants it to be handled. He presented an outline of a process discussed by the staff and wanted to get comments from the Committee. He said not everyone has the history from past year and a half of work done on the street projects, including the many neighborhood and ward meetings on each project. A lot of work has been done to get the concepts where they are now and staff just wants to make sure the process is being handled as the Committee wants it to be handled. Chris Brown outlined the process as set up by staff. The first few steps involve gathering data, finding out who the property owners are along the project street. Field surveys and conceptual designs come next. After that, there will be a presentation of the concept design at the Street Committee. Once that has been done, there will a public hearing. Property owners will be contacted individually, in writing, inviting them to the public meeting. The format of the meeting will be drop-in. The plans will be laid out and property owners can come in at any time during the time set aside for this hearing to look at the plans and ask questions of staff. After this public hearing, comments will be compiled and brought back to the Street Committee. If there is anything significant that needs to be changed on the design, staff will come back to the Committee for discussion before moving forward. Input will also have to be gathered from affected utilities. If changes need to be made to the plan to accommodate the utilities and save money and time, it is best to have the information early in the process. The goal is to move forward into the final stages of the design without a lot of changes. After a footprint of the road is established, plans showing actual right-of-way to be acquired will be prepared. After these plans are prepared, legal documents for easements can be prepared to acquire the properties. At that time, the acquisition process begins. In response to a question from Alderman Ferrell, Chris Brown said that when two City projects being handled by different divisions (i.e. a Water & Sewer project and a Transportation project) are in the same area, staff try to work together to avoid conflicts. In these situations there can be both opportunities and problems. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 6 of 16 Gary Dumas brought the Committee's attention back to the public involvement process outlined by staff. He said at the last meeting there were some questions about whether or not abutting property owners had been contacted before the issue was brought to the Street Committee. This is an effort to outline the process so that the Committee is informed early. The Committee will be informed about the project before the public knows about it. There will be some contact with property owners early, such as when we get on the property for the surveys. But before a concept design is shown publicly, it will be brought to the Committee. Staff is proposing to follow the process as outlined but said the process can be changed if the Committee so chooses. Alderman Cook said he understands that this is the process staff is now following. Alderman Jordan said he has no problem with the process. It is the process under which this Committee has always worked. Alderman Jordan opened the floor for public comment. There being none, the discussion was brought back to the Street Committee. Gary Dumas reminded the Committee that the first time the citizens will be hearing about a project is when the conceptual design is presented at the Street Committee meeting. There may be some concerns that they have not been informed earlier in the process. However, there will be many opportunities for public comment after that first meeting. 4. Discussion of the offsite street improvements associated with the Wedington Circle PZD includine the closure of the Mt. Comfort Road intersection at Garland Ave. Ron Petrie said this was briefly discussed at the end of the last Street Committee meeting. It pertains to a recommendation made by the Street Committee and forwarded to the City Council roughly one year ago. There is a lot of concern about the additional traffic from this development and the conflicts we have on Garland Avenue. At the time this was first discussed we knew that the State, with the City's participation, would be widening Garland Avenue and we would be looking at changing the intersection on the west side of Garland. It was determined that it would be better to look at improvements on the east side of Garland for this development. Those recommendations are coming from our BWR study. Mr. Petrie briefly outlined the proposal. At the last meeting the Committee asked Mr. Petrie to provide the minutes of the Planning Commission asking that this issue be reconsidered and a list of traffic accidents in this area. Both items of information were provided to the Committee. The accident rate varies from 5 to 18 accidents per year over the last eight years. He said he would have expected the rate to be higher. Alderman Jordan opened the floor for public comment. Glenn David Wilson said he spoke at the last meeting of the Street Committee. He owns property on Mt. Comfort Rd. between Garland and North Street. He also owns property on 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 7 of 16 Garland Ave. He said he has forwarded to each alderman an e-mail with an attachment providing an analysis of ten reasons not to close Mt. Comfort Rd. He offered and received permission to review that e-mail and his list of reasons not to close this section of the road. He mentioned alternative methods of controlling the speeding problem, such as speed tables and a stop sign that stops traffic on the section of Mt. Comfort on each side of Lindell. He said he has concerns about access of emergency vehicles if there is a barrier at the intersection of Garland Ave. and Mt. Comfort. He talked about the options traffic has right now to get around in the area. He believes that putting the barrier up at Mt. Comfort will create a considerable hazard to the merchants and people in Oak Plaza. The Wedington Circle project as well as Sam's Club will add to the intensity of traffic at this intersection in the future and he expressed concern that closing this section will add even more traffic. He also discussed the possible negative business impact on the merchants in this area. He talked about the character of the road and the intensity of the traffic during athletic and other University events. Glenn Sowder said he has some property on North St. and Gregg Ave. and has lived more than half of his life in this neighborhood. He finds it very convenient when going to one of the seven restaurants in the Oak Plaza area to cut off to the right on Mt. Comfort and he feels like this option significantly reduces the traffic at the intersection of Garland and Mt. Comfort. He would like for the Committee to look at this seriously before a decision is made. Don Johnston said he owns Oak Plaza. He only became aware of this a few days ago. He said he has owned the north part of Oak Plaza since 1973 so he is pretty familiar with the area. It is his opinion that Mt. Comfort is not the problem. It is a very busy area with a lot of businesses and traffic. He believes that closing off this section of Mt. Comfort will add to the traffic at the intersection. He is also concerned about traffic trying to avoid the barrier and driving through a parking area he has set aside for students catching the bus. He would ask that Mt. Comfort not be closed. He thinks there are ways to slow down and reduce the amount of traffic but he believes that closing the street will have a more negative than positive affect. Mr. Johnston also passed on two letters written by business owners at Oak Plaza. Donna Elliott, Oak Plaza Laundry, spoke about her concerns. She said she doesn't have a problem with closing the south end of Mt. Comfort where it comes off North Street. But closing off the other end eliminates one of the entrances for the shopping center. She believes this will cause a lot of congestion in this area. In addition, she believes if a barrier is installed with signage, it could block the view of the shopping center and could hurt business. Jay Max Van Hoose, representing Harps Food Stores said they would prefer to see the access remain open. Staff at his store has observed only a few accidents and he believes that is because of the driving prowess of their customers. Ms. Underhill, owner of the Taco Shack, said this closure would hurt her more than most because her business is on the corner. She would like to see the road stay open. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 8 of 16 There being no further public comment, the discussion was brought back to the Committee. Alderwoman Allen said since she is new to the Street Committee, she would like to know how this came to the Committee. Ron Petrie said this project (Wedington Circle) was at the City Council as a PZD. The City Council recommended the issue go to the Street Committee for this discussion. Alderman Jordan said he remembers that he and Alderwoman Lucas received word of concerns from the neighborhood on Hendricks regarding the traffic. In discussing traffic calming, this road was brought up. Alderman Cook added that it originally came up when the BWR study recommended closing this section of road. Alderwoman Allen wondered why the people in this shopping center were so late in knowing about this project. Ron Petrie said the way in which this subject came up was very abnormal. All the public notifications for the PZD were completed for going through Council. The Council recommended that the Street Committee look at the issue and give some recommendations. At the time recommendations were being discussed, improvements here were not being discussed. The way it all evolved was very abnormal. Alderwoman Allen said it seems like closing the road will cause more problems with traffic cutting through the parking lot and will have negative impact on the Oak Plaza businesses. Alderwoman Thiel said she tends to agree with Alderwoman Allen about not closing Mt. Comfort but she likes the idea of realigning Oakland Avenue. She believes that would slow traffic. She doesn't know how much cost is associated with acquiring the property needed to make the realignment but if the cost isn't too much, the solution makes sense to her. Alderman Ferrell said he applauds the business people who have come down to talk about how this project is going to affect them. He likes to see this citizen input. Since what started this discussion was the development across the street, he asked Mr. Petrie if leaving the streets the way they are would have any drastic affect on this development. Ron Petrie said the reason we got to this point was the large amount of additional traffic that would be coming up on this very dangerous "Y". All the people coming from the development would be added to the area. Alderman Cook said his comments would be the same as they were at the last Committee meeting. Where Mt. Comfort comes out on Garland, there are so many intersections and no defined intersection. Even if we close that section of Mt. Comfort there are still four entrances 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes February 5, 2007 Page 9 of 16 and exits from that shopping center. Part of the reason the traffic runs "Willy nilly" is that there is no order in that area. The difference between the street and the parking lot is non existent— people exit the street into the parking lot at any point along the street. The discussion about closing this section of Mt. Comfort was designed to bring some control to this area and the Committee really didn't think it would negatively impact the businesses there. Alder -woman Lucas said it is a dilemma. She said she travels in the area a lot and she feels like she's avoiding cars right and left. She didn't see a problem with closing off this section of the street but she doesn't want to hinder the businesses there. She thanked the owners of Oak Plaza for letting the students park there in the parking lot. That's a real service and really helps with traffic. Donna Elliot sought permission to make a suggestion. Alderman Jordan granted permission for one comment only. She suggested allowing only right turns for Mt. Comfort and for the exits out of the shopping center. Traffic would then have to go down Lindell to the intersection. A lot of the conflict comes from traffic coming out of the shopping center and making left turns. Alderwoman Thiel questioned how we could dictate traffic coming out of a parking lot. We could put signs on the streets but people who couldn't make a left turn off the street would probably cut through the parking lot to take a left, thus jeopardizing the people on Mt. Comfort going right. She said she likes the idea of realigning Oakland but only if the cost is justified by the traffic calming. Ron Petrie said there is no cost to the City. This will be done by the Wedington Circle development. Alderwoman Thiel wondered if there is a way to ask the owners of Oak Plaza to put some plantings across the front to eliminate so many exits out of the parking lot in lieu of closing Mt. Comfort. Alderman Ferrell said he isn't opposed to doing anything on Oakland but wondered if that has to be tied to this situation. Alderman Ferrell moved to recommend that this section of Mt. Comfort not be closed Alderwoman Allen seconded the motion and it passed unanimously. In response to a question from Alderman Jordan, Ron Petrie said he would have to get the opinion of the City Attorney on whether this would go on to the City Council if approved by the Street Committee. Since this was an amendment to the PZD approved by the Council he believes that it will have to go back before the City Council. 5. Presentation and discussion of the proposed 2007 Sidewalk Improvements and Street Overlay Program by the Transportation Division. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 10 of 16 Terry Gulley presented information to the Committee, including some before and after pictures of streets where work has been done in the last year. The information also included a list of projects completed last year, broken down by ward. He briefly reviewed the information. He said that the City completed about 13 miles of overlay in 2006. Because of the increase in the cost of asphalt and other materials, they ran out of money to do any more. The Transportation Division came back this year and asked for additional money from the Council, which was approved. The list of projects for this year was based on that new funding. He reviewed some of the streets to be completed this year. He said that on approximately 17% of the streets to be paved, they will be doing some sidewalk and/or curb and gutter improvements, etc. in addition to milling and overlay. Alderwoman Thiel asked about the project which includes a sidewalk on Wyman from Crossover to Stonebridge but no sidewalk on Stonebridge from Wyman to 15th St. Terry Gulley said there was no project at this time for that section of Wyman. At one time a grocery store chain was looking at putting in a store and if that happens, half of the distance in sidewalk will be paid for by that development. Since it is undeveloped land, staff hopes we might be able to get a sidewalk in without having to fund it with these monies. Alderwoman Thiel said she had heard that this is the section where they really want a sidewalk. There are three little streets there with a lot of residents. The sidewalk on Wyman is nice but you have to be able to get to Wyman on Stonebridge. Terry Gulley said the goal was to put a sidewalk on Wyman to give walkers a place to go from there back to Hwy 265 where there are sidewalks. Alderwoman Thiel said she wants a sidewalk on Stonebridge also. Terry Gulley said we can still look at that. They will have to do all the drainage work, install drainage piping and cover it up to be able to put in a sidewalk. He said they will revisit that, understanding that if this is included, more than likely something else will have to be cut. Mr. Gulley continued to review the projects on the list ward by ward. He said each ward will be getting approximately 5 miles of street overlay projects. He said they are trying to keep it fairly even by ward but in coming years, because Wards 3 and 4 have a lot of new subdivisions, there will probably be a lot more deteriorated and older roads in Wards 1 and 2, which is an older section of town. Although they are trying to distribute the projects evenly across the wards, they also have to look at the city as a whole and address the worst streets. Alderwoman Lucas asked when Mr. Gulley thought work would start on sidewalks on Mt. Comfort and Porter Rd. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 11 of 16 Terry Gulley said he would have to get back with Alderwoman Lucas with a specific date. They first wanted to review this with the Committee, then staff will begin the process of developing a plan for what sections to do in what order. He talked about the split form paver the City has purchased, allowing us to do a lot of curb and gutter and sidewalk work at a cheaper cost. He said when it is used they can pour in one day what it could take 30 days to do in the past. It has really sped up the process. Alderwoman Thiel said Stonebridge from Wyman to Huntsville is 1165 ft. She asked if any of the areas targeted this year for sidewalk installation have sidewalks already on either side. Terry Gulley said he didn't think they have any plans to go with a sidewalk where there is already a sidewalk on one side. Alderwoman Thiel mentioned one on South Willow from Huntsville to 7a' St. Because it is around a school it's probably a good place for a sidewalk to be installed but there is a sidewalk on one side. Terry Gulley said that street is in such bad condition the curb and gutter and sidewalk, which are all one piece, will have to be pulled out. Therefore, since it will have to be pulled, they will put it back the right way. There are a few projects, like this one, on the list where the need for one program is leading to putting another program on the list. He continued to review some of the projects on the list. He told Alderwoman Thiel that they could try to put the Stonebridge section of sidewalk on the 2008 schedule as a number one priority. Alderwoman Thiel said she would like for that to happen. She said the neighbors here have been very patient and she would like for them to hear that something is going to be done. Terry Gulley continued to review the projects on the list. He said they looked hard around schools first to make any improvements needed. Alderman Cook mentioned that a study was done by the Planning Division on number of kids walking to schools. They found that Butterfield Elementary had the highest percentage of children walking to school. He believes that's because the City did a great deal of work on sidewalks connecting the neighborhoods to the school. Terry Gulley said that another project Transportation will be taking on this year is the TIF district sidewalks. There is $180,000 set aside for this and we will go in and do as much as they can with the money available. Alderman Cook said he thinks the Committee will agree that Terry's department does good work and they have been very impressed with the progress being made. He said he does not have any problems with the list. He does ask that the list go to the Sidewalk & Trails Committee for review. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 12 of 16 Terry Gulley said it will be on the agenda of that Committee's next meeting. This meeting just happened to come first. Alderwoman Thiel said she had a call from a citizen with a question related to improvements on Mission (Hwy. 45). She asked if the City ever does any resurfacing on this street or if it is something the State has to do. Terry Gulley said the City could get permission to do work on it but we would have to jump through a lot of hoops to do that. Alderwoman Thiel said she is not suggesting the City do the work but wondered about the process to get the projects put on the State's list for improvements. Terry Gulley said we can pass the request on to the State. He said he has been in contact with a couple of homeowners on Park Place who have a concern about the difficulty the school busses are having turning in there. They run up on the drop inlet which kicks the bus over and scares the parents. He said Transportation is looking at how this can be dealt with. The State has tentatively given an okay for the City to flare this out a little. There is also a request for turn lanes. He said his division is working with the State and with the neighbors to try to come up with solutions for these issues. In response to a question from Alderman Ferrell, Terry Gulley said we had a three year time limit on the TIF monies and we have not done any of the work at this point. He said he thinks the expiration is sometime around May 2008. We either use the $180,000 that was approved for that project or we lose it. Gary Dumas said he doesn't think there is an option of losing the money — we have to do the project because it is part of the TIF plan that the Council approved. The project is to do some sidewalks that are within the TIF district to be funded by TIF proceeds. He said the TIF district has been created and the plan has been approved. This is part of the public improvements associated with that plan. Terry Gulley said a side benefit of getting the TIF district was that it would generate $180,000 that we needed to use within a three year time period. Tim Conklin said the $180,000 has to be used on sidewalks within the district. The list was put together to do those improvements within that district. The money is there and we need to build the sidewalks. The list was the plan put together and approved by Council. Alderman Ferrell asked if there was a reason not to do a little each year instead of waiting to do it all in one year. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 13 of 16 Terry Gulley said the program was already set for last year when the list was finished. They knew they could do the work within a one year time frame so they didn't jump on the list immediately. Alderman Jordan opened the floor for public comment. There being none, he brought the discussion back to the Street Committee. There was no further discussion from the Street Committee. 6. Presentation and discussion of a street cost share with the Seven Hills Homeless Center to upgrade approximately 630 feet of a 20 ft. wide drivewav to a 24 ft. wide public street. This item was tabled at the Jan. 11, 2007 Street Committee Meeting. This item was not discussed by the Committee at the request of staff. 7. Presentation of conceptual drawings and cost estimates of the widening of Rupple Road between Wedington Drive and Persimmon Street. Ron Petrie said the Committee has a copy of two options. He handed out a copy of the cost information for those options. Option A is the plan that has been out there since the conception of Rupple Road as it exists today. The sidewalk was built far from the east side of the right-of- way and the road itself was built on the west side. At the time this was just a minor arterial leading to nowhere. This plan is for a four -lane road utilizing the existing sidewalk on the east side of the road. The section cost is for 54 ft. width including the 14 ft. wide outer lanes, utilizing existing sidewalk on the east. This option is estimated at $2.1 million. This also includes the portion of the street located north of Wedington Drive, relocation, widening and redoing the signalization at the intersection. That section alone is a little over $700,000. For the second option the plan shows a 9 ft. median and a wider outer lane (though not 14 ft.). This street exists now as a 28 ft. wide street with standard 2 ft. curb and gutter. We still get the same street width as the 14 ft. but officially the City measures from gutter to gutter for lane widths. Each section will be 28 ft. back to back. There will be six ft. sidewalks on both sides of the street. He pointed out that with this option the existing 8 ft. sidewalk on the east side would have to be removed. Also, approximately 50 trees that were planted a few years ago on the east side will have to be replanted somewhere else. The cost for this option is $2.58 million. In regard to funding, there is a half million in the 2006 CIP that was set aside for Rupple Road between Mt. Comfort and Wedington. That money was never used since that portion of Rupple Rd. was not put on the bond program. Staff recommends utilizing that money, with the remaining portion to come from the bond program money set aside for cost sharing. Alderman Jordan asked if this includes the $150,000 letter of credit. Ron Petrie said he hopes that we can use that but has no guarantee that we will have that money so it is not included in these calculations. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 14 of 16 Alderman Jordan asked who would make that decision and when we will know what that decision is. Gary Dumas said he believes this is a timing issue. He said though the $150,000 issue is important, at this point the Committee needs to select an option and staff will work on trying to lock in the $150,000. Alderman Jordan said he presented both options at his ward meeting and pretty much everyone there wanted the boulevard. However, this is not something he has yet discussed with Alderwoman Lucas and he would like to run it by her before he commits to an option. In response to a question from Alderman Ferrell, Gary Dumas said though it is not necessary to have an option selected before we can find out about the $150,000, there is a time frame within which we have to have the street built if the money is to be available. He believes the contract says the street has to be built (not started) by a specific date. He said if the Committee decides to build the street, staff can attempt to negotiate a date beyond the contract. Alderman Jordan said they have already decided to build the street. The issue for him tonight is not how to build it but the funding for it. Whether the $2.1 million option is chosen or the $2.6 million, he wants to know about the $150,000. There is a Street Committee meeting set for Feb. 12 and between now and then he will have had a chance to discuss the issue with Alderwoman Lucas. Alderman Ferrell said when they voted to build the road part of the decision was contingent upon having that money available. Gary Dumas said, in explaining the situation, that in 2001 the Council approved a contract which says if we do something by a certain date, then the developer will give money. We are not going to meet that date. So unless we can negotiate something different with the developer, then we can assume the money is not there. In response to a question from Alderwoman Allen, Gary Dumas explained that the contract approved in 2001 was with a 3rd party developer who is now gone. He said that the developer who purchased that property has stated that they prefer a boulevard cross section. If the Committee says they want a boulevard, he believes we have some negotiation room with this developer. Alderman Cook said it would be nice to be able to get this money from the developer, but the issue for him is the $1.6 to $2.18 million and where that will come from. A member of the audience asked for and received permission to speak. She said one of the most common phrases she hears is "I wish we would have..." She said she doesn't want to hear that 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 15 of 16 on this project. She asked that her elected officials to be visionary and plan for the future. Ward 4 residents are interested in a boulevard and she believes this issue is at the point of action. This is an opportunity to do something right the first time. Alderman Jordan repeated that he wants to talk to Alderwoman Lucas and get her thoughts before he commits to a boulevard. Alderman Cook said we want to build the road and now that we have the pricing options, it is a matter of deciding which we want to fund. There is $400,000 difference and although that isn't a small amount, to get the road that the people want to see and the style this Committee has been discussing since the beginning of the bond discussion, it might be the best option. Ron Petrie said in regard to cash flow on the bond program, we have $24.6 million available in the first three years. We are moving many of these projects forward very quickly. When we set out the schedule we assumed we would be using $2 million out of the cost share account in the first three years. He pointed out that we are a little over at this point. We will still be okay but there is the potential that in three years we will need a very brief loan from the general fund to cover from the end of the three year period to the next period when more funds will be available. He brings this up so the Committee will know that if we are looking at additional cost shares, the money will not be available. He said overall this is a good thing because it means we have been able to complete $24 million worth of work. 8. Discussion of North Street and Mission Ave. east to Hwy. 265 (added to the agenda by Alderman Ferrell) Alderman Ferrell asked that this be added to the agenda. He said at one time there was a plan for North St. and widening of Mission out to Hwy. 265. He asked if Ron Petrie could give a description of the city's plan. Ron Petrie showed a slide of the original presentation from staff to the Street Committee in December 2004. The cost, going all the way from North Street to Crossover was $5.5 million to widen the street to three lanes. Between the original presentation and the time the first package was put out in March 2005, this project had been pulled. BWR had shown this to be a principle arterial. Because of the cost escalation since 2004, the estimated cost of the project would have to be reevaluated. He said that $5.5 million would be on the low end at this point. Gary Dumas said this does not include the section on North or Lafayette. Alderman Ferrell said he believes it is time to move forward to remedy some of the traffic problems on Mission. He mentioned that citizens at one Planning Commission meeting had spent over two hours talking about the traffic issues on this street. He said he would welcome hearing comments from the other aldermen. 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org City Council Street Committee Minutes Febmary 5, 2007 Page 16 of 16 Alderman Jordan said he feels there is a need there. He thinks the issue should be discussed and asked for any input from the Committee Alderwoman Allen said she agrees this is a big problem and she feels the dialogue needs to begin. She doesn't see it happening in the 20 year plan but thinks we should start looking at issues beyond then and begin thinking about a light rail system or the loop around Fayetteville. She said there is no easy answer to this but every day that goes by makes it more expensive to do what we want to try to do. Alderman Cook said we could put it on the agenda and hammer it out but the discussions have involved the citizens in different neighborhoods in Ward 2 who are afraid of channeling more traffic into their area. There is no easy solution but he thinks that some of the other projects in the bond issue plan will help alleviate some of the problem, especially as Hwy. 265 is built and we continue to make improvements on the south end of town. Making this street a principle arterial will create a lot of concern. Alderman Ferrell said he understands the concerns of the Ward 2 residents but also sees that the people in the Ward 3 are concerned about the current condition. There are three schools in this area and the safety factor is an issue. He said he hasn't looked at the accidents at Hwy. 265 and Hwy. 45 or Old Wire Rd. but it is an intolerable situation right now. The traffic is tremendous and it's not going to get less. The three schools, one right after another, have a compounding affect on the bottleneck situation. He wants to do the best for everyone but he believes we need to move forward on this and see what can be done. Alderwoman Allen said we needed to start a long time ago. She agrees we need to begin a dialogue. She isn't sure how it needs to be done but thinks it is time to hammer it out. Alderman Ferrell said he would visit with his ward and come back to the Committee with recommendations on how to move forward with public meetings, etc. Alderman Jordan opened the floor for public comment on this issue. There was none. 9. Scheduling the next Street Committee Meeting The next meeting of the Street Committee was set up for Monday, February 12, 2007 at 4:30 p.m. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned 113 West Mountain 72701 (479) 521-7700 (479) 575-8257 (Fax) accessfayetteville.org