MPO Executive Board

Bristol Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization April 9, 2015 Board Members Present: Councilman Guy Odum - Bristol, Virginia Ambre Torbett - Sullivan County, Tennessee Nick Weander - Tennessee Department of Transportation Mayor Irene Wells - Bluff City, Tennessee Cherith Marshall - Washington County, Virginia Members Absent: Bristol, Tennessee Virginia Department of Transportation Others Present: Rex Montgomery - Bristol MPO Jay Detrick - Bristol, Virginia Tim Beavers - Bristol, Tennessee Bill Sorah - Bristol, Tennessee David Metzger - Bristol MPO Salem Bush - Mount Rogers Planning District Calvin Clifton - Mattern & Craig Call to Order / Roll Call: A Quorum being present, Chairman Odum called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m., April 9, 2015, in the Conference Room of the City of Bristol Tennessee Annex Building. Approval of Minutes: Nick Weander moved to adopt the minutes of January 27, 2015 as submitted; seconded by Cherith Marshall; motion carried unanimously. Comments from the Public: None Old Business: Item A: MPO Prospectus and By-Laws [Presented by Rex Montgomery] The Executive Board reviewed the MPO Prospectus and By-Laws at the January 27, 2015. At that meeting, the Board moved for consideration of final approval at the next regular scheduled meeting, contingent on clarification of the requirements for the Tennessee and Virginia Open Meetings Act. Since that meeting, additional comments have been received from TDOT and the Federal Highway Administration. The additional comment and revisions were discussed. It was noted the formal approval [by the Governor of Virginia] for the updated Metropolitan Planning Area has not be received. As a result, final adoption of the By-Laws and Prospectus should be deferred. There being no further discussion, Mayor Wells moved to place approval of the By-Laws and Prospectus on the agenda for the next regular scheduled Executive Board meeting, contingent on approval of the Metropolitan Planning Area by Virginia; seconded by Cherith Marshall; motion carried unanimously. New Business: Item A: FY 2015 Unified Planning Work Program Amendment #3 [Presented by Rex Montgomery] The Unified Planning Work Program outlines the MPO’s annual transportation planning activities and programmed funding for the fiscal year. The City of Bristol, Virginia has requested the MPO to participate in funding the purchase of ortho-photography for the City, which would be available for the MPO to access and utilize. A total cost of $12,526 has been quoted by the Virginia Information Technologies Agency of which $6,263 (50%) would be due this fiscal year. The City of Bristol Virginia would be responsible for the local match. The funding utilized would be programmed from the City’s current (FY 2015) grant contract with VDOT and does not represent new funding. Because the procurement is greater than $5,000, amendment to the UPWP is required as well as approval by VDOT/FHWA. There being no questions or discussion, Nick Weander moved to adopt Resolution 15-02 approving Amendment #3 to the FY 2015 Unified Planning Work Program; seconded by Mayor Wells; motion carried unanimously. Item B: Virginia House Bill 2 [Presented by Rex Montgomery] Governor McAuliffe signed House Bill 2 (HB2) into law in 2014, which directs the Commonwealth Transportation Board to develop a prioritization process for selecting transportation projects for funding. VDOT has been holding Stakeholder Sessions to gain input on the implementation process. The proposed methodology includes classification of MPOs (and PDCs) into four categories based on population density, population growth, and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) per lane mile. Each classification category will have weighting factors in reference to congestion mitigation, economic development, accessibility, safety, and environmental quality, which will determine project ranking and project selection for funding. As proposed, the Bristol MPO has been classified as Category C, which has raised concerns in reference to a low weighting percentage (20%) for economic development. Due to our local priorities to promote economic development within the region, discussion incurred on the weighting for economic development as it relates to the MPO’s current classification in Category C and the potential for the MPO to successfully compete for project funding. Based on our low population growth projections, it appears the MPO could be defined as Category D, which has a 30% weighting factor for economic development The consensus of the Board was the low population growth rate for the region was not reflected in VDOT’s methodology for the proposed topology for the Bristol MPO. Cherith Marshall moved to request VDOT, via a letter to the Secretary of Transportation, to classify the MPO as Category D; seconded by Mayor Wells; motion carried unanimously. Other Matters of Mutual Interest: None Adjournment: There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was adjourned. Page 2