Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission

AGENDA Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission Community Room Arlington Heights Village Hall, 33 S. Arlington Heights Rd., AH 60005 April 17, 2025 7:30 PM I. CALL TO ORDER II. ROLL CALL OF MEMBERS III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Approval of minutes form February 25, 2025 meeting IV. REPORTS V. OLD BUSINESS VI. NEW BUSINESS A. • Bike Arlington Community Bike Ride – May 10, 2025 1. Discussion on logistics and assignment of duties VII. OTHER BUSINESS VIII. PUBLIC COMMENT Anyone wishing to speak on a subject not on the Agenda may speak at this time. Please limit your comments to three minutes. IX. ADJOURNMENT Persons with disabilities requiring auxiliary aids or services, such as an American Sign Language interpreter or written materials in accessible formats, should contact the Health & Human Services Department, at 33 S. Arlington Heights Road, Arlington Heights, IL 60005, healthmail@vah.com or 847/368-5760. [MEET_FOOT] Page 1 of 8  Minutes of the Arlington Heights Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission Tuesday, February 25, 2025 in the Community Room at Village Hall COMMISSION MEMBERS IN ATTENDANCE: Richard Lenski, David Easley Lyn Sakata Juergen Juffa Paul Danko (arrive 7:37pm) MEMBERS ABSENT: Charlotte Obodzinski Dr. Jay Virchow STAFF PRESENT: Daniel Hoscilo, Public Works & Engineering Liaison, VAH Rob Horne, Assistant Director, Public Works & Engineering Department, VAH Sergeant Russell Mandel, Police Department, VAH OTHERS PRESENT: Pete Schmelzer, Arlington Heights Bike Club Ford Sakata, Arlington Heights Bike Club RESIDENTS IN ATTENDANCE: Alexis McGowan, Resident Keith Moons CALL TO ORDER: A quorum being present, R. Lenski called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: April 24, 2024 BPAC Meeting Error found on page 2 of minutes under Staff Report, paragraph 3, Com Ed Bike Path Project, dollar amount should be $480,000.00 and not $480,00. D. Easley made motion to approve minutes with amendment/correction, L. Sakata seconded. All in favor, motion passed. REPORTS CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT: R. Lenski explained that he recently met with the VAH Attorney who went over highlights of the Open Meeting Act with him and all other VAH Commission Chairpersons. This type of meeting is held every couple of years for all old and new chairpersons in case items have changed. The chairperson is required then to relay the information to their commission. Items he went over are as follows: Quorum for BPAC is four members, Communication to/from commission is to go through the VAH Liaison and members must be very careful in regard to phone, text, email, instant messages, Facebook communication, no political or social matters are to be discussed at meetings, meetings must have an agenda with business related items, discussion of business related items not on agenda allowed, but commission cannot take final action on items, as they would need to be listed on the next meeting’s agenda, minutes are the official record of the meetings, both open and closed and must be approved no later than 30 days after meeting or prior to following meeting, any person from public may have limited comment at the meeting during the public comment portion of meeting, Chairperson cannot make a motion, Motions must be seconded, anything talked about in a meeting and any text messages sent or received during the meeting can be FOIA’d (Freedom of Information Act) 1 Page 2 of 8 Strategic Priorities for 2025 R. Lenski stated it was time to prepare the BPAC’s Strategic Priorities letter for 2025. He read C. Obdodzinski’s 2024/2025 report. (attached) Discussion followed about BPAC’s priorities for 2025. R. Lenski stated that moving forward they still want to strive to be a Vision Zero Community. He brought up the following projects that are moving forward: Wilke bike path, Windsor Road Diet, Com Ed Bike Path. D. Hoscillo reported the specifics of a 2028 Cook County project along Buffalo Grove Road in Buffalo Grove, which is an extension of Windsor and that they are planning to implement eight feet for a bike path all the way to Hintz Road. R. Lenski went over the items that he will keep/save in the new letter. Discussion followed about speed limit. D. Hoscilo talked about speed limit blanket speed limit restrictions. R. Horne spoke on keeping/maintaining the BPAC’s strategies/goals in place for the next year. R. Lenski to create a new letter using the same items and adding the Buffalo Grove project and explain specifically their desire for the Arlington Park parcel. Discussion followed. R. Horne mentioned that the new strategy letter should be changed, since a blanket speed reduction is restricted, that it be reworded to “strategically identify locations that speed reductions can improve pedestrian safety.” Dan explained traffic studies etc. Motion made by L. Sakata to give R. Lenski permission to draft a new letter and get a draft to D. Hoscilo. Seconded by D. Easley. All in favor. Motion passed. STAFF REPORT: OLD BUSINESS: Bike Arlington Community Bike Ride 2025, May 10, 2025 Discussion followed on details of the bike ride. Posted on Village website, 10:15am start time, registration opens at 9:45am. D. Hoscilo explained bike route and start/finish is the same as last year and we will again be sharing the day with the Swing into Spring event. R. Lenski went over B. Schwab’s old responsibilities as the Engineering Liaison to D. Hoscilo, as the new Liaison so he understood his responsibilities. They are as follows: Online registration with QR code, marketing, Police contact, liaison with the AHPL and physically doing in-person walk up sign ups on race day. R. Horne explained he was already getting emailed registrations. D. Hoscilo went over his new responsibilities in detail and agreed to work with VAH, Communications and Events Specialist, Kailey Schwartzhoff on these items. Sergeant R. Mandel spoke on Police duties (flyer, etc.) D. Hoscilo mentioned he would speak to the Special Events Commission (Swing Into Spring) to coordinate the events. BPAC members will reach out to vendors (Velo Fix etc.) Sergeant R. Mandel said the Community Service Bureau will have a table and tent there for the event. Arlington Bike Club will have a tent. Sergeant R. Mandel explained he will not be there on the day of event, but Brian Clarke, Sergeant, Community Support Services Unit, will be there in his place and will be fully staffed, as always. He will bring him up to speed on all details. D. Hoscilo asked about cancellation due to weather. Emergency Service protocol will be followed. If it is cancelled in advance, registrants will be notified via email per their registration. Snacks will be bought by David Easley. Sign duty discussed. AH Bike club will have 20 volunteers or more for route riders and leaders etc. Discussion about rote riders. D. Hoscilo passed out paper copies of bike ride route. Discussion followed about new race route (short and regular route) and the intent of showcasing the new path/improvements on the South side of town (Fernandez, White Oak, Wilke) Adjustments will be made and sent out to BPAC members and staff. D. Easley made motion to approve the ride route with comments made by the commission. L. Sakata seconded. All in favor. Motion passed. NEW BUSINESS: Introduction of new Liaison, Daniel Hoscilo, Public Works & Engineering: D. Hoscilo introduced himself. 3.5 years on staff at VAH, went over contact details. J. Juffa asked if the bike ride now had a permanent partnership with the Swing into Spring event. Discussion followed. Talked about the possibility of a fall bike ride also. R. Horne 2 Page 3 of 8 explained importance of this to maximize resident experience. J. Juffa spoke on his availability to design future ride routes. PROJECT UPDATES: Windsor Dr. Road Diet- D. Hoscilo updated commission that it is in the design phase. Will update BPAC further at next meeting. Com Ed Bike Path- R. Horne updated the commission that an Engineering firm has been selected, Christopher B. Burke Engineering LTD. They are in the process of planning and negotiating with Com Ed. They are evaluating a possible bridge over Rt. 53 and a tunnel under Arlington Heights/Rand/Techny. Project is in its infancy stage. PUBLIC COMMENT: P. Schmelzer informed BPAC that the AH Bike Club is partnering with the AHPL for the March 31, 2025 education program “Solo Spins to Group Grins, How to Cycle with a Group.” Last year’s event had attendance of 200. He is a speaker. Alexis McAdams spoke. She is a data analyst for CMAP Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. She is not involved in the project but wanted to talk about the Cook County Safety Action Plan. CMAP is collecting feedback and public comment for this on safety hazards for all modes of transportation throughout Cook County. Wanted to connect with commission to forward information so they can comment. R. Lenski explained the BPAC must be careful as they are not allowed to, as a commission, represent without Village Board advisory, but they can do so as individuals. R. Horne asked her to send the link to D Hoscilo, as the staff liaison and he will forward to the BPAC. A. McGowan then asked to add the building of bike parking structures to the Strategic Priority report. Discussion followed about regulations and the recent Bike Parking ordinance that was passed. Ford Sakata spoke in regard to strategic goals. Wanted to know if BPAC has a charter that summarizes them. Discussion followed. Bike Plan that is in place dictates projects etc. and drives goals of the commission. It can be found on the Village Website. Resident also wanted to know if there could be a list or summary of BPAC’s summary of goals or accomplishments. R. Horne said he could investigate the possibility of BPAC getting a page on the VAH website with a public summary of what the BPAC has helped get accomplished. Keith Moons spoke and had two comments. First, he wants the Village to seriously consider developing a Village wide speed calming policy that applies a realistic speed threshold that directs staff to put in speed calming measures. He said Mount Prospect has a great example of that right now. He thought it was called the Friendly Neighborhood Street program. He said they have a threshold that's realistic and if met, something would be done. He said it takes the subjectivity out of it, and it has a voting procedure, everything that's in it is all set by the Board of Trustees and directs the staff to do that. He believes that we need something like that here in town. His second comment is regarding bike parking, as he feels that we are continually losing bike parking locations. Discussion followed about process of adopting a similar plan with BPAC proposal. Will be added to Agenda for next meeting. OTHER BUSINESS: Next meeting is scheduled for April. Date TBD. ADJOURNMENT: J. Juffa moved to adjourn the meeting. D. Easley seconded the motion and the motion carried unanimously and the meeting adjourned at 8:58 pm. 3 Page 4 of 8 APPROVED: ______________________________ ________________ Secretary Date 4 Page 5 of 8 Memorandum To: Randall R. Recklaus, Village Manager, Village of Arlington Heights From: Charlotte Obodzinski, Chair, Arlington Heights Bike and Pedestrian Commission Re: 2024-2025 Strategic Priorities Summary As the Village prepares its strategic priorities for 2024 through 2025, the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission has been reflecting on the ongoing implementation of recommendations set forth in the 2017 Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan. The plan highlights many of the challenges faced by pedestrians and cyclists in Arlington Heights, while citing that more Arlington Heights residents drive to work compared to Cook County and the region (86.2% versus 65.2% and 75.2% respectively). Village residents also bike, walk and use transit to get to work at lower rates than the Cook County and the region as well. To address this, the plan outlines improvements to the bike and pedestrian network throughout the Village and it continues to be actively leveraged by staff to identify projects along key corridors. Accomplishments over the last five years include increased bike route signage throughout the Village, the Buffalo Creek Trail extension and traffic signal improvements at Lake Cook and Wilke Roads, and the striping of on-street combined bicycle and parking lanes along various corridors. However, since some of these efforts have been undertaken, transit mode splits have not been reassessed to gauge progress, so it is unclear what the impacts of these investments are. The Commission commends the work that Village staff continues to do to implement elements of the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan and offers recommendations for consideration to further this work. Recommendations It is recommended that the Village utilize regional and local travel demand data to identify current mode splits and set incremental goals to increase active modes of transportation in the Village. At minimum, it is recommended that the Village aim to meet or exceed Cook County and regional mode split averages by 2030 with a longer-term goal of doubling the rate of walking, biking and transit usage by 2040. Data would need to be evaluated with regularity to identify if progress is being made towards meeting these goals. To accomplish this, strategic investments in the bike and pedestrian networks are required and the Village should continue to pursue priorities identified in the 2017 Bike and Pedestrian Plan, such as: - Continued reduction of intermittent gaps in existing bike routes and sidewalks - Ongoing coordination with bordering municipalities to connect bike and pedestrian networks - Expanding the number of bike and pedestrian routes that connect to Pace and Metra services - Improve the safety of crossings for cyclists and pedestrians at major regional arterials throughout the Village and connecting to neighboring bike and pedestrian networks. Barriers to implementation of plan elements should be identified and, if warranted, policies should be pursued to aid in the implementation of improvements. To this end it is recommended that the Village evaluate roadway design standards to act as potential barriers to bike and pedestrian 5 Page 6 of 8 infrastructure improvements. Specifically, the Commission recommends reducing the minimum lane width on Village streets from 11 to 10 feet to provide more available right of way. The Commission also supports the continuation of Village staff’s efforts to reduce the Village wide speed limit to 25 mph on local streets. Similarly, to tackle institutional barriers to implementation on roadways under IDOT jurisdiction, the Commission recommends that staff continue to work with the IDOT to implement context sensitive roadway improvements that prioritize local goals for bike and pedestrian movements over designs that favor higher vehicle speeds and truck movements. Further the Village has previously applied to the League of American Bicyclists to be designated as a bike friendly community in 2013 and did not receive this title. The organization provided feedback to the Village and many of the recommendations have been implemented, however some challenges to biking remain. Specifically, the feedback said that Palatine Road is a barrier to cycling and the community, preventing residents from accessing Lake Arlington. To address this the BPAC applauds staff’s efforts to pursue a road diet along Windsor and to approve the intersection at Palatine Road. The BPAC also hopes to see work continued along the corridor to reduce more barriers to biking and walking in the Village. Finally, to increase the Village’s commitment to bike and pedestrian amenities the BPAC also recommends that the Village consider becoming a Vision Zero Community. This requires setting a goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and severe injuries along all road users while increasing safe, healthy and equitable mobility through a multi-faceted approach that prioritizes traffic safety as a public health issue through policies and design. Conclusion As the village looks to redevelop large parcels, such as Arlington Park Racetrack, the BPAC is committed to continuing to work towards the developments of policies that support a bike and pedestrian friendly community. The Commission values your request for input as the Board of Trustees looks to set strategic priorities for the coming years. We look forward to being a continued partner in this effort and to increasing active transportation in Arlington Heights. 6 Page 7 of 8  Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commission 4/17/2025 Item: • Bike Arlington Community Bike Ride – May 10, 2025 1. Discussion on logistics and assignment of duties Department: Item Description: ATTACHMENTS: None Page 8 of 8